ersity  of  California 
mthern  Regional 
jibrary  Facility 


THE  DRAGON 


THE  VANGUARD 

A  TALE  OF 

KOREA 


By  JAMES  S.  GALE 

Autbvr  of  "Ktrean  Sketches" 


ILLUSTRATED 


NEW  YORK  CHICAGO          TORONTO 

Fleming    H.    Revell    Company 

LONDON   AND   EDINBURGH 


Copyright,    1904,    by 

FLEMING  H.  REVELL  COMPANY 

(March) 


New  York:  158  Fifth  Avenue 
Chicago:  63  Washington  Street 
Toronto:  27  Richmond  Street,  W 
London:  21  Paternoster  Square 
Edinburgh:  30  St.  Mary  Street 


71 

The  dear  'wife  and  the  girls 
so  far  away 


2023S35 


Preface 


THERE  are  other  battles  than  those  fought  with 
steel  and  lead,  where  generalship  is  needed,  and 
courage  likewise.  It  is  concerning  one  of  these, 
now  going  on,  that  this  book  is  written.  With  only 
a  thin  veil  of  disguise  thrown  over  the  actual  workers, 
who  are  still  on  the  field,  and  only  such  fictitious  ele- 
ments introduced  as  are  necessary  to  a  story  that  has 
to  do  with  native  thought  and  character,  the  writer  has, 
to  the  best  of  his  ability,  given  a  true  picture  of  the  cam- 
paign thus  far,  and  the  conditions,  with  some  of  its  lights 
as  well  as  its  shadows.  May  the  earnestness  of  the  con- 
flict come  home  to  the  reader. 

J.  S.  G. 


Contents 


I.  ON  BOARD  SHIP 1 1 

II.  THE  OATH 18 

III.  IN  PING-YANG 25 

IV.  THE  TONG-HAKS 32 

V.  SIR  JAMES 38 

VI.  KIM'S  VICTORY 44 

VII.  Ko  IN  PRISON          -        -        -        -        -51 

VIII.  PLUM  AND  OTHER  WESTERNERS         -        -  56 

IX.  HAND  TO  HAND 69 

X.  CASTING  THE  DIE 81 

XI.  THE  PRINTING  PRESS         -        ...  86 

XII.  THE  WAR 95 

XIII.  A  FALLEN  HERO 99 

XIV.  MAJOR  PAK -  106 

XV.  To  THE  NORTH 114 

XVI.  DOING  THE  DOCTRINE       -  126 

XVII.  THE  SHINS  AND  FIREBLOWER     -        -        -  132 

XVIII.  HOME  AGAIN        • 136 

XIX.  PLUM'S  WEDDING 141 

XX.  THE  ENVIRONMENT 146 

XXI.  THE  CHOLERA  SCOURGE    -        -        -        -  158 

XXII.  THE  HAPPY  HOME  LAND  -        -        -        -  169 

XXIII.  THE  CALL  OF  Ko     -        -        -        -        -  172 

XXIV.  NORTH  AGAIN 178 

XXV.  THE  ATTACK  ON  WINTERSHINE          -        -  184 

XXVI.  THE  SUMMONS  HOME        -        -        -        -  189 


CONTENTS 


XXVII.  FlREBLOWER  AND  THE  MAN  KANG 

XXVIII.  WILD  BEASTS 

XXIX.  THE  SMASH  OF  FIREBLOWER 

XXX.  THE  TOK-NEEPS 

XXXI.  THE     DRAGON'S      PERPLEXITY 

WILLIS'      - 

XXXII.  WHERE  is  THE  DRAGON  ?     - 

XXXIII.  UNDER  THE  KNIFE      - 

XXXIV.  INGATHERING      -        -        - 

XXXV.  THE  LAST  OF  WINTERSHINE 

XXXVI.  THE  SORROWS  OF  PUFFSNAUBER   - 

XXXVII.  BUILDING  THE  CHURCH 

XXXVIII.  THE  DRAGON'S  MARRIAGE   - 

XXXIX.  Ko's  MISSION     - 

XL.  FROM  ALL  DIRECTIONS 

XLI.  THE  JUBILEE      - 

XLII.  WILLIS  MOKSA'S  REWARD   - 


AND 


194 
203 

2IO 
219 

234 
24I 
252 

257 
26l 
269 
274 
282 
288 
296 
302 
313 


LIST  OF  ILLUSTRATIONS 

Facing  Page 
THE  DRAGON -         Title 

WATCH  THE  GREAT  RIVER  WIND  ITS  WAY  OFF  TOWARD  THE  SEA  28 
PUNISHING  AN  INSURRECTIONIST        -----         36 

"CALLERS  CAME  DAILY  TO  WILLIS"        -        -        -        -        -    61 

THE  EAST  GATE,  PING- YANG      ------         70 

MAJOR  PAK     ----------no 

SPEAKING  TO  A  CROWD  IN  THE  STREET  120 

PILL'S  SHOP    - ---136 

"OLD  GRANDMA   KIM"        -------        174 

"THE  SHIP  PULLED  OUT  OF  HARBOR"  -    190 

"DOWN  THE  ROADWAY  THAT  LED  TO  THE  SHORE"       -       -       210 

ALL  OUT  TO  GREET  HIM      -       - 220 

WHERE  THE  TOK-NEEPS  USED  TO  MEET       ...       -       228 
A  KOREAN  SAW-MILL         -------       277 

SHIN  AND  His  WIFE --       -    292 

"THE  GREAT  CHURCH  -ON  THE  HILL"        -  302 


I 

ON  BOARD  SHIP 

THE  rattle  of  the  anchor-chain,  and  the  scream 
of  the  siren  whistle,  told  the  little  people  of 
Nagasaki  that  the  steamship  Kare  was  off  for 
Korea.     Already  her  bow  was  westward,  ploughing  the 
foam,  out  to  the  open  sea,  the  funnel  rolling  out  smoke 
and  the  breeze  singing  through  the  rigging. 

Two  young  men,  the  only  English-speaking  passengers 
on  board,  leaned  over  the  gunwale  watching  the  receding 
city  hide  its  face  behind  the  hills,  that  moved  out  to  shield 
it  one  by  one. 

"  Japan's  a  stunning  country,"  said  the  stouter  of  the 
two,  whose  name  was  Shoreland.  "  For  a  play-house 
life  and  never-a-care  she  beats  the  world.  Fancy  a 
nation  of  boys  and  young  men  manoeuvring  ten  thou- 
sand ton  battle-ships,  and  then  metamorphosing  off  into 
the  quiet  of  the  Orient  as  if  they  lived  nineteen  hundred 
years  B.  c.  The  women  too  are  pictures  of  sunshine.  It 
knocks  my  calculations  of  life  all  to  pieces.  Are  they  as 
happy  as  they  look  ?  " 

"  I  cannot  say  they  are  not,"  said  the  other. 

"  If  they  are  as  happy  as  they  look,"  said  Shoreland, 
"  I'd  like  to  have  their  gospel  to  live  by." 

Just  then  the  hoarse  whistle  roared  to  the  lighthouse 
on  the  shore,  and  the  flag  dipped  a  salute  as  they  pushed 
out  into  the  foggy,  crumpled  sea. 
n 


12  THE  VANGUARD 

Regardless  of  fog,  or  sea,  or  pending  night,  the  Kare, 
of  thirteen  hundred  tons,  child  of  the  Clyde,  turned  on 
full  steam  and  ploughed  on  into  the  uncertainties. 

"  I  like  to  know  that  a  white  man  has  this  craft  in  tow 
a  night  like  this,"  said  Shoreland. 

"  Griff's  all  right,"  said  Willis.  "  He  has  only  one  eye, 
I  notice,  but  he  can  see  further  with  that  than  most  men 
can  with  two,  besides  we  believe  in  the  silent  partner, 
don't  we,  who  takes  a  hand  when  it  comes  to  fog  and 
sea." 

On  into  the  night  steamed  the  Kare. 

"  That's  right,"  said  Shoreland, "  but  I'll  give  it  up  how 
a  fellow  as  bright  as  you  are,  Willis,  can  throw  your  life 
away  as  you  mean  to  do.  This  missionary  undertaking 
is  the  maddest  thing  out ;  even  the  people  who  have  lived 
here  all  these  years  and  seen  it  first  hand,  have  no  use  for 
it.  Give  it  up  and  come  along  with  me,  I'm  going  to 
have  a  year  in  Siberia,  with  a  tiger  hunt  thrown  in,  and 
some  geology  to  vary  the  monotony ;  this  missionary 
craze — well  I  pity  you." 

Willis  was  tall  and  slight  and  looked  delicate,  but  he 
had  a  clear  mind  and  was  fired  with  a  subtle  something 
that  Shoreland  could  not  fully  understand.  They  had 
picked  up  acquaintance  on  the  way,  one  an  Australian, 
and  the  other  an  American.  Shoreland,  though  still 
young,  had  been  policing  it  in  South  Africa  and  had  seen 
a  deal  of  the  world,  for  he  was  a  man  of  money.  Willis 
was  an  American,  with  a  decided  leaning  towards  the 
Scotch-Irish  home  of  his  ancestors,  bound  east  now  as  a 
missionary. 

They  walked  the  deck  together.  Captain  Griff,  who 
saw  them  pass  the  bridge,  shouted,  "  Gentlemen  !  One 
of  our  mile-stones  !  "  and  suddenly  out  of  the  mist  and 


ON   BOARD   SHIP  13 

darkness  there  loomed  a  great  rock,  echoing  back  the 
whistle  as  if  to  say,  "  Be  wary  !  " 

Darker  it  grew,  and  the  fog  closed  down,  and  the  wind 
whistled,  but  the  ship  steamed  on. 

"  It  is  the  only  hope,"  said  the  captain.  "  There  are 
tides  and  cross  currents  and  what  not ;  if  you  want  to 
keep  your  bearings  you  must  go  at  full  speed;  slow 
down,  and  you  are  on  the  rocks  unless  you  can  get 
anchorage." 

"  That's  what  I  call  walking  by  faith,"  said  Shoreland. 

They  went  below  to  talk  over  the  prospects  of  the 
morrow.  They  were  to  see  the  Land  of  Morning  Calm, 
which,  in  Willis'  mind,  was  the  most  interesting  country 
in  the  world,  though  he  knew  nothing  whatever  of  it.  It 
was  to  be  his  home,  and  in  it  he  was  to  see  signs  and 
wonders,  and  from  the  dusky  faces  of  its  people  he  was 
to  read, — but  never  mind,  we  shall  see  later  on  what  he 
was  to  read. 

They  turned  in  to  sleep  to  the  purring  sound  of  the 
propeller,  Shoreland  conscious  that  a  good  man  from 
Wales  had  charge  of  the  ship,  and  Willis  thinking  of 
another  who  was  a  specialist  on  the  sea.  Suddenly  in 
the  night  they  were  awakened  by  the  sharp  ring  of  the 
captain's  gong,  and  the  engines  slowed  down.  It  was 
inky  black  and  they  were  rolling  tremendously. 

"  Tws-e-e-n-ty-w-a-n ! "  sang  out  the  little  Jap,  who 
was  heaving  the  lead,  "  Tws-e-e-e-n-ty  !  " 

"  Boom  !  "  went  something,  and  a  thrill  like  an  earth- 
quake shook  all  the  fibres  of  the  ship.  For  an  instant 
sound  and  motion  ceased,  and  there  was  a  deathly  calm, 
then  a  rattle  of  footsteps  and  hurried  voices. 

"  I  say ! "  said  Shoreland,  bouncing  out  of  his  bunk, 
"  we've  struck  something." 


14  THE   VANGUARD 

Up  they  went  on  deck,  and  the  ship  was  already  listing 
like  a  walking-beam  and  rolling  lifelessly. 

"  Stand  by  the  boats,"  rang  out  the  chief  mate's  voice, 
and  the  lamplight  showed  every  dusky  Jap  in  his  place 
steady  as  the  rock. 

Willis  was  steady  too,  and  so  was  Shoreland.  He  had 
fought  Kaffirs,  and  Zulus,  and  Hottentots,  but, "  By  Jove," 
said  he,  "  this  looks  bad." 

Happy  the  man  who  has  all  his  accounts  straight 
when  the  prow  goes  down  and  the  propeller  somersaults 
out  of  the  sea ! 

There  were  many  Japanese  on  board,  and  pig-tailed 
Chinamen,  every  one  anxious  for  the  one  life  in 
hand,  uncertain  of  any  other.  Where  was  Captain 
Griff?  He  was  somewhere,  turning  heaven  and  earth, 
he  and  his  dusky  crew,  to  save  his  passengers  and  his 
ship. 

She  listed  no  further,  but  hung  by  the  anchor-chains 
till  morning  came,  and  the  sea  quieted,  and  a  beautiful 
picture,  such  as  Japan  only  is  capable  of,  unfolded  itself 
before  the  anxious  passengers,  a  fairy-land  of  town  and 
hill  and  sea.  These  were  the  Gotos  that  the  good  ship 
had  tried  to  split  open  in  the  night,  and  cut  off  from  the 
Empire  of  the  Rising  Sun. 

Back  again  over  the  sea  with  head  down  and  propeller 
high,  went  the  Kare,  slowly  feeling  her  way  home  to 
Nagasaki,  her  spirit  broken  and  the  pride  with  which  she 
had  once  tossed  the  water  faded  away. 

Poor  Captain  Griff!  This  was  his  first  mishap;  his 
wife,  his  good  ship  had  come  to  grief.  He  knew  these 
unlighted,  unsounded  waters  better  than  any  other  man 
living,  but  "  For  my  life,"  said  he,  "  last  night  beat  me. 
Such  a  fog  I  never  saw,  I  had  to  slow  down,  and  anchor 


ON   BOARD   SHIP  15 

I  could  not,  for  there  was  no  bottom,  so  the  tide  rolled 
me  on  to  the  rocks." 

But  the  Kar'e  had  her  wound  riveted  up,  and  the  cap- 
tain held  his  record  clear,  and  many  a  day  again  they 
ploughed  through  the  foam  hand  in  hand,  and  kicked  up 
the  briny  waters. 

Two  men,  who  have  stood  side  by  side  in  the  supreme 
moment  of  suspense,  can  never  forget  each  other.  All 
of  life  that  remains  carries  the  picture  of  the  one  with 
the  other.  Shoreland  could  still  see  Willis'  steady  face 
in  the  night,  and  his  heart  went  out  in  pity  to  him,  as  he 
thought  of  his  fate  and  the  joy  and  satisfaction  of  life 
that  he  was  to  lose.  Willis  thought  of  Shoreland  and 
said,  "  What  a  good  fellow  he  is,  so  broad  and  strong, 
and  hopeful ! "  but  there  was  a  sense  of  loss  and  pain, 
and  an  unanswered  wish,  as  he  thought  of  his  com- 
panion. 

People  in  Nagasaki  are  accustomed  to  seeing  ships, 
great  and  small,  sail  in  and  out  and  pay  no  attention,  but 
to  behold  a  steamer  coming  in  slowly  on  its  nose  is  quite 
another  matter.  That  night  the  newspapers,  with  their 
spots  and  dots  and  lines  running  the  wrong  way,  said 
"  The  Kar'e  Mam  has  met  with  resistance  on  rocks,  large 
and  protruding,  related  in  space  to  the  islands  of  the 
Goto ;  a  portion  of  her  covering  has  been  stripped  away ; 
she  was  also  damaged  internally,  but  they  are  hopeful 
of  recovery.  The  passengers  are  safe,  including  two 
Westerners  named,  Sho-ru-nan-du  and  Wi-ru-su,  born 
in  the  Ox  (1865)  and  Pig  (1868)  years,  and  plying  for 
occupation,  that  they  may  eat  and  live,  missionary  busi- 
ness and  sight-seeing." 

Fifteen  days  were  passed  before  repairs  were  made  and 
the  Kar'e  once  more  faced  the  dangers  of  the  deep,  fifteen 


16  THE   VANGUARD 

days  in  a  Japanese  inn,  among  the  wonders  and  oddities 
of  the  Sunrise  Kingdom.  The  room  occupied  by  the 
foreigners  was  in  the  middle  of  a  large  upper  story,  that 
was  divided  off  by  thin  partitions  into  six  or  eight  apart- 
ments. By  a  wave  of  some  fairy  wand,  the  partitions 
would  vanish  of  a  sudden,  and  leave  the  guests  occupy- 
ing the  middle  space  of  this  hotel,  with  others  squatted 
on  the  matting  on  all  sides  of  them.  Shoreland  and 
Willis  understood  nothing  of  Japanese,  but  they  learned 
to  bow  and  be  polite,  and  that  was  all  that  was  needed 
to  have  the  time  pass  pleasantly.  They  drank  unsweet- 
ened tea,  from  cups  little  larger  than  thimbles,  brought 
in  by  a  pretty  waiting-maid,  who  bowed  and  bowed  and 
said,  "  Ha-i-i-i ! "  She  looked  over  Shoreland's  shoulder, 
while  he  was  combing  his  hair  in  the  morning,  and  with 
her  fingers  tried  to  pull  her  own  almond  eyes  down  to  a 
slope  and  angle  that  would  correspond  with  his,  with  no 
success,  however. 

In  a  cupboard  at  the  side  of  the  room  were  the  gods 
they  worshipped.  Many  prayers  were  said  daily  to  the 
Buddhas,  until  Shoreland  learned  one  by  heart.  When 
he  tried  to  repeat  it,  the  waiting-maid  laughed,  and  gave 
him  a  thump  on  the  back  that  almost  took  his  breath 
away.  "  Dear  me ! "  said  he.  "  She  has  a  hand  like  a 
trip-hammer,  and  she  only  three  feet  high." 

Willis  laughed  at  his  shattered  expression. 

"  I  had  thought  of  marrying  and  settling  down  in  this 
most  delightful  land,  but  the  weight  of  that  little  hand 
makes  me  reconsider." 

But  they  were  kindly  treated.  Hospitality  in  minia- 
ture was  dealt  out  to  them  on  all  hands,  by  little  women, 
on  little  tables,  in  diminutive  bowls,  out  and  out  the 
strangest,  dreamiest,  funniest  possible  fairy-land  known  to 


ON   BOARD   SHIP  17 

mortal  man.  Willis  wondered  whether  Korea  would  be 
like  this  or  not. 

The  sea  was  at  last  crossed,  and  the  Kar'e  was  steam- 
ing into  Chemulpo  harbor,  picking  her  way  slowly  by 
the  sounding  lead,  Captain  Griffon  the  bridge,  and  the 
passengers  looking  out  on  the  brown  hills  and  browner 
huts,  that  circled  the  long  stretch  of  tide-washed  shore. 
This  was  Korea. 

On  the  deck,  watching  the  tumbled,  tovvsled  mass  of 
humanity  unloading  cargo,  stood  Captain  Griff,  Shore- 
land  and  Willis.  "  The  noisiest  rascals  alive,"  said  the 
captain.  "  Chemulpo  makes  more  fuss  and  does  less  work 
than  any  other  harbor  in  the  world."  "  Willis,  old  fel- 
low," said  Shoreland,  "  do  you  think  these  wild  beasts 
will  convert  ?  You'll  have  to  corral  them,  or  take  them 
with  a  lasso.  Come  along  with  me  instead." 

Suddenly  two  coolies  developed  a  fight,  fast,  each  to 
the  other's  topknot,  holding  on  with  a  grip  of  death,  till 
a  Japanese  sailor  walked  up  to  the  rail  and  threw  a  bucket 
of  water  over  them.  They  let  go,  looked  sideways  at  the 
Jap,  with  a  disgust  beyond  words  to  express,  and  forgot 
what  they  were  fighting  about. 

"  A  man  that  can  take  a  bucket  of  water  with  silent 
contempt,"  said  Willis,  "  has  something  in  him." 

But  it  was  not  to  study  the  natives  that  these  three 
had  met  together,  but  to  say  good-bye.  Shoreland  was 
going  aboard  a  "  China  merchant "  for  Chefoo,  Willis  was 
at  his  destination,  and  Captain  Griff  was  returning  once 
more  to  the  rocks  and  fog  of  Nagasaki. 


II 

THE  OATH 

IT  was  night  in  the  city  of  Ping-yang,  dark  and  for- 
bidding. A  few  straggling  lights  were  seen  passing 
here  and  there  through  the  narrow  streets.  There 
were  long  weird  calls  heard  from  the  Yamen,  repeated  at 
intervals,  and  drums  rattling  in  prayer  to  the  devils  down 
on  the  river. 

Somebody  was  dead  over  the  way,  and  there  was  des- 
perate weeping,  "  I-go  !  I-go  !  "  Drinking  dens  every- 
where made  night  hideous.  In  a  hut,  that  squatted  low 
by  the  gate  of  the  city,  sat  a  heavy-faced  Korean,  hold- 
ing fast  a  woman's  hand. 

"  You  swore  you'd  live  with  me  always,"  was  what  he 
said. 

Her  answer  came  cool  and  steady :  "  You  make  the 
money  and  I'll  live  with  you,  not  otherwise." 

"  But,"  said  he,  "  we  are  man  and  wife  and  child,  and 
I  must  keep  you,  else  we  die  together." 

"  Die,  do  we  ?  Not  if  I  know  it,"  and  she  wrenched 
her  hand  from  him  and  pushed  him  violently  away. 
"  I'm  not  here  to  die  with  you,  but  to  live." 

Ko  shot  out  of  the  door  as  if  for  his  life,  and  fled  to 
pray  to  the  dragon  on  the  hill ;  then  he  came  back  to  an 
inn  near  by,  drank  himself  drunk,  and,  for  the  moment, 
slept  away  his  sorrows. 

For  five  months  she  saw  him  not,  and  the  wee  dot  of 
a  baby,  with  its  black  eyes  and  Mongol  soul,  lived  un- 
18 


THE  OATH  19 

cons  do  us  of  the  one  who  claimed  it.  At  last,  unwashed 
and  bedraggled,  through  the  East  Gate  of  the  city,  came 
staggering  the  man  Ko,  sans  "  cash."  His  home,  as  he 
expected,  was  occupied  by  another.  A  desperate  case 
his,  ordinary  ways  and  means  were  out  of  the  question. 
He  loved  his  wife  and  child,  of  course,  but  she  had  drifted 
away  from  him  on  the  wing  of  some  malignant  spirit,  and 
none  but  the  gods  could  bring  her  back. 

"  Oh,"  says  she,  "  you  are  here  ?  " 

"  But  not  to  stay,"  said  Ko,  "  merely  to  speak  my  word 
and  depart" 

She  looked  with  surprise  at  this,  for  she  had  thought 
him  greatly  in  love  with  her,  and  a  willingness  of  any 
kind  on  his  part  to  leave  was  startling. 

Said  he,  "  The  gods  have  spoken  to  me.  I  have  a  plan 
that  will  make  us  happy  by  and  by,  but  cannot  tell  it 
now."  He  drew  from  his  pocket  a  paper  tablet  marked, 
"  Ten-years-and-we-shall-know,"  tore  it  in  two,  gave  half 
of  it  to  the  woman,  and  said  "  Keep  it  safe  till  I  return." 
In  the  manner  of  the  Orient  they  wept  together  and 
parted. 

All  the  devils  were  in  league.  Here  was  the  wife  he 
wanted,  and  the  child,  but  lost  to  him.  He  would  over- 
come, yes  in  spite  of  fiends.  He  dreamed  of  money,  saw 
strings  of  cash  floating  in  his  visions,  though  in  actual 
life  he  was  a  gambler,  a  drunkard,  a  thief,  who  found 
scores  of  companions,  ready  made  to  do  him  service. 

Said  he,  "  As  long  as  this  wretched  mouth  of  mine  is 
in  working  order,  with  eyes  and  ears  to  help,  I  can  do 
nothing;  once  rid  myself  of  mouth  and  I'm  all  right; 
£*£  itf  Put  a  stopper  in  it,  and  I  can  see  my  way  clear, 
but  how  ?  Refuse  to  speak  ?  They'd  stone  me  out  of 
town.  The  spirits  must  settle  this  matter  too." 


20  THE   VANGUARD 

Back  of  the  city  suburb,  where  he  now  lived,  there  was 
a  famous  shrine,  under  the  hill,  noted  for  its  mysterious 
power.  Any  one  who  prayed  earnestly  to  it  got  what 
he  wanted ;  and  any  one  who  took  liberties,  was  dealt 
with  after  the  manner  of  the  immortal  gods.  On  the 
first  day  of  the  moon  and  the  fifteenth  day,  the  people 
of  the  town  brought  food  and  money  and  paper,  and 
spread  it  out  on  the  ground  before  the  spirit  and  said, 
"  O  spirit !  here  is  this  offering,  take  it,  eat  it,  inhale  it, 
do  what  you  like  with  it,  only  be  good,  and  give  us 
money,  and  rice,  and  sons,  and  good  grave  sites,  and  long 
life,  and  nothing  to  do,  amen ! " 

Ko  made  inquiry  of  the  village  folk.  "  How  about 
the  god  up  on  the  hill  there,  is  he  any  good  ?  " 

"  Good  ?  Well  I  should  say,  get  what  you  want  if  you 
go  at  it  right,  or  you'll  get  the  day  of  judgment  if  you 
try  any  nonsense." 

So  Ko  took  a  jug  of  whiskey  and  a  censer,  and  went 
up  to  pray. 

A  few  days  later,  when  a  crowd  gathered  in  the  inn, 
said  he,  "  I  prayed  to  that '  business  '  up  on  the  hill,  five 
days  ago  now,  and  no  sign  of  an  answer.  Call  it  good, 
do  you  ?  Good  for  nothing  I  should  say.  I  have  a  mind 
to  take  a  bamboo  and  smash  the  thing  to  pieces." 

The  listeners  gave  a  start.  "  You  evidently  want  to 
die  an  awful  death,"  said  they.  "  Blasphemy  ! "  shouted 
others,  stopped  their  ears  and  ran. 

Ko  thundered  out  into  the  street,  tore  his  hair,  danced 
like  a  fury,  swore  awful  oaths  against  the  spirit  and  the 
shrine,  ran  amuck  up  the  hill  and  with  a  rock,  hurled 
straight  at  it,  bang  !  "  To  perdition  !"  shouted  he.  "You 
and  other  demons  like  you."  But  scarcely  had  the  words 
passed  his  lips,  when  he  fell,  bowled  over,  as  if  struck  by 


THE  OATH  21 

lightning.  The  town  folk  came  slowly  and  cautiously 
out  to  see  what  was  left  of  him,  and  found  blood  around 
his  mouth.  "Ah,  ha!"  said  they,  "the  spirit!  the 
spirit ! "  He  was  carried  home  and  laid  in  a  corner,  and 
so  fQfRfd  the  night. 

Next  day  he  arose,  but  there  were  no  words  in  his 
mouth,  no  answer  to  questions ;  those  who  whispered  to 
him  left  without  response.  Days  passed  one  after  another 
in  silence,  and  Ko  became  known  as  Pungoree,  the  dumb 
man,  smitten  by  the  spirit  for  an  act  of  blasphemy ;  but 
in  Ko's  mind  were  other  visions,  visions  of  money  now 
to  be  made  freely,  for  his  mouth  was  stopped,  and  the 
faithless  wife  and  the  little  boy  were  sure  to  be  his,  when 
ten  years  of  silence  had  passed  him  over. 

Three  years  of  dumb  wandering  proved  to  Ping-yang 
the  power  of  this  mountain  shrine.  The  keeper  made  his 
fortune,  for  the  sick  and  lame  and  blind  came  daily  to 
sacrifice  and  pay  tribute  to  him.  They  would  ask,  "  Do 
you  think  the  god  that  lives  here  is  able  to  do  what  I 
want?" 

"  Well,  I  reckon  he  is,"  said  the  keeper,  taking  his  pipe 
out  of  his  mouth.  "  Do  you  see  that  coolie  yonder  with 
a  load  of  buckets  on  his  back  ?  His  name  is  Ko,  called 
centurion,  though  he  isn't  one ;  he  used  to  make  more 
noise  than  any  man  in  the  country,  shouting  and  swear- 
ing, and  after  he  had  abused  various  mortal  men,  he  came 
to  insult  his  reverence  and  threw  a  rock  at  him.  I 
needn't  tell  you  that  he  hasn't  spoken  for  three  years. 
Take  your  pipe  out  of  your  mouth  and  be  careful,  for 
this  god  is  not  to  be  fooled  with,"  and  so  the  prayers 
would  be  said  with  all  humility.  "  Oh  great  and  awful 
god,  my  boy  has  a  spitting  sickness,  and  a  ball  of  blood 
inside  of  his  stomach,  that  rises  and  keeps  his  food  from 


22  THE  VANGUARD 

going  down,  also  he  has  rats  in  his  legs  that  won't  keep 
still,  make  him  well.  Alas !  Alas !  for  my  boy  unless 
you  condescend." 

In  the  third  year  there  came  tidings  to  the  deaf  ears 
of  Ko.  He  heard  that  the  little  boy  with  the  almond 
eyes  and  the  yellow  skin,  his  precious  son,  who  lived  over 
the  walls  in  the  city  was  dead,  the  laddie  whom  he  was  to 
win  at  the  end  of  these  years  of  silence,  dead,  so  that 
there  was  no  longer  hope  of  the  mother,  and  no  meaning 
in  the  oath  that  he  had  taken  to  be  dumb.  He  decided 
to  break  away,  but  here  also  was  a  difficulty.  To  simply 
begin  speaking  would  be  contrary  to  Oriental  methods  ; 
he  could  never  do  so,  so  he  made  his  way  that  afternoon 
to  the  home  of  a  medicine  man,  or  sorcerer,  that  lived  on 
the  river  bank.  The  man's  name  was  Quik  and  his  busi- 
ness was  to  put  needles  into  people,  then  speak  a  prayer 
and  make  them  well ;  the  more  it  hurt  and  the  more  they 
squirmed  the  surer  the  recovery.  He  knew  the  dummy 
Ko  and  looked  out  on  him  as  he  came.  "  Well,"  said 
he,  "  what  can  I  do  for  a  man  that  cannot  speak  ?  " 

Ko  motioned  him  aside,  and  then  to  his  amazement 
said  in  a  whisper,  "  I'm  not  dumb  at  all,  but  have  pre- 
tended for  these  three  years,  and  now  I  want  to  give  it 
up,  but  can't  without  excuse.  If  you  will  put  me  through 
an  operation,  and  cure  me  in  the  eyes  of  the  town,  you'll 
make  you  a  name  and  a  fortune." 

Quik  forgot  his  shock  of  surprise  in  the  thought  of 
this  most  excellent  scheme.  He  would  announce  to- 
morrow as  his  sacrificial  day  and  call  all  the  town. 

A  sacrifice  to  the  gods  in  Korea  equals  a  quilting  bee, 
a  barn  raising  and  a  municipal  election  all  in  one.  There 
is  always  much  to  eat  and  much  to  drink,  and  a  babel  of 
voices  indescribable. 


THE   OATH  23 

At  Dr.  Quik's  house  there  was  a  multitude  of  small 
tables,  a  foot  or  so  high,  and  as  large  round  as  a  flour 
barrel,  loaded  down  with  boiled  rice,  meat,  whiskey,  soy, 
stewed  sea-weed,  fancy  confectionery,  all  ready  for  the 
sacrifice.  He  had  hired  professional  weepers,  and  they 
came  in  and  bowed  before  the  tablet  and  bawled  out, 
"  I-go  !  I-go  !  I-go  ! "  with  such  an  accent  of  distress  and 
woe,  that  you  would  actually  think  their  hearts  would 
break;  but  you  need  have  no  anxiety,  for  a  moment 
later,  they  laugh,  and  shout,  and  turn  in  and  get  glo- 
riously drunk. 

Such  was  the  show  in  progress  at  Dr.  Quik's,  where  Ko 
was  to  be  operated  on  for  a  dumb  spirit,  that  had  pos- 
sessed him  three  years. 

Heavy-faced,  dull-eyed  Ko  took  his  place  on  the  cor- 
ner where  all  might  see  him.  Dr.  Quik  then  made  a 
speech,  "  This  affliction  of  Ko  the  centurion  is  caused  by 
a  dumb  devil  that  has  taken  possession  of  one  of  the 
strings  of  his  neck.  It  can't  be  dislodged  by  medicine, 
or  sacrifice,  or  saying  prayers,  the  only  thing  for  such  a 
possession  is  a  spirit  needle  and  without  flattering  myself, 
who  am  but  dust  and  ashes,  I  would  still  say  that  I  am 
the  only  man  in  Ping-yang,  who  possesses  the  gift  of  in- 
serting the  same  effectually.  Before  the  eyes  of  all  you 
onlooking  noble  gentlemen,  I  shall  now  proceed." 

He  put  Ko  down  with  his  face  to  the  ground  and  set 
the  needle  to  work,  by  twirling  it,  gradually  driving  it 
under  the  skin,  where  it  began  to  find  its  way  in  deeper 
and  deeper.  Ko  saw  stars  and  meteors,  and  squirmed  in 
mortal  agony.  After  one  or  two  insertions,  a  pass,  and 
a  mysterious  word  to  the  demon,  Ko  swung  back  on  his 
knees  and  suddenly  shouted  in  stentorian  voice, "  I  can 

tftl]r I  ran  talk  !  " 


24  THE  VANGUARD 

So,  by  virtue  of  this  great  physician,  the  spell  had  been 
broken,  and  Ping-yang  was  electrified  with  the  news  that 
Dr.  Quik  had  cured  centurion  Ko. 

With  one  accord  the  company  called  the  town  band, 
composed  of  some  six  players,  and  had  them  parade  the 
streets  with  pipes,  and  pans,  and  flags,  shouting  the 
praises  of  the  spirit  doctor.  For  three  days  and  three 
nights  the  celebration  continued  till  the  whole  town  to  its 
farthest  limits  knew  of  it  and  Quik's  name  and  fame  were 
established  forever.  Ko  joined  his  old  companions  and 
went  back  to  a  life  of  drinking  and  riot. 


Ill 

IN  PING- YANG 

NEAR  the  same  East  Gate  of  Ping-yang  on  the 
low  ground,  crowded  into  a  tangled  group  of 
houses,  is  a  narrow  court  and  tiled  hut,  to  which 
many  callers  are  drawn  day  by  day.  There  are  in  front, 
overhanging  eaves,  and  a  narrow  ledge  of  veranda,  on 
which  shoes  are  left  by  parties  entering.  The  outer 
walls  are  of  mud,  plastered  on  basket  lathing.  From 
many  places  the  mud  has  fallen,  and  the  straw  ropes  and 
twigs  show  through.  On  the  posts  are  mottoes  in  Chi- 
nese, "  Sweep  the  court  and  gold  turns  up."  "  Open  the 
door  and  joy  comes  in."  At  the  side  of  the  entrance 
there  is  a  stall  of  dried  persimmons,  tobacco,  oil-cloth 
pouches,  strings,  headbands,  hat  covers,  over  all  of  which 
a  towsled,  smudgy  boy  presides.  Across  the  street,  some 
twenty  feet  distant,  there  is  a  butcher's  shop,  where 
bloody  looking  meat  is  hanging.  Dogs  with  hairless 
mangy  backs  hang  about  waiting  for  offal. 

Past  the  door  go  crowds  upon  crowds  dressed  in  white, 
some  on  high  stilt  shoes,  made  so  as  to  lift  them  above 
the  mud  ;  others  in  leather ;  others  again,  with  soaked 
socks,  wade  through  the  mire.  The  sewage  and  night 
soil  is  rolled  out  into  the  pots  and  cesspools  of  the  narrow 
street.  On  one  side  an  old  woman  is  making  pancakes 
for  the  passers,  pancakes  mixed  with  splashings,  cooked, 
and  oiled,  and  savory.  The  eaters  regard  not  and  ask  no 
questions,  for  the  Orient  is  always  hungry.  Smells  too 
25 


26  THE  VANGUARD 

that  would  paralyze  the  soul  of  a  Westerner,  are  unno- 
ticed by  these  wise  men  of  the  East. 

Horses  not  much  larger  than  mastiff  dogs,  loaded  with 
pack  or  pack-saddle,  go  jingling  by.  Stolid  cattle,  moun- 
tains of  'unconsciousness,  help  to  congest  the  narrow 
way,  and  so  it  keeps  up  in  rain  and  sunshine,  the  year 
through,  in  this  main  thoroughfare  of  Ping-yang.  Some- 
times the  sun  shines,  and  the  road  dries  off,  and  the  wind 
peppers  the  pancakes  with  the  trampled  dust,  and  fans 
the  coolie  as  he  lies  asleep  amid  a  noise  and  turmoil  that 
would  waken  the  gods. 

Not  a  sign  of  Western  life  anywhere  !  This  is  the  old, 
old  Orient,  as  it  was,  and  is,  and,  some  think,  ever  shall 
be.  Men  are  busy  looking  out  the  footprints  of  the  an- 
cestors, and  walking  therein,  without  thought,  or  emo- 
tion, or  desire,  or  hope. 

But  into  the  house,  under  the  gate,  where  the  plaster 
has  fallen  off,  and  past  which  the  crowds  surge,  many 
callers  are  entering.  It  is  a  dark,  narrow  room  filled  to 
suffocation,  eight  feet  wide,  ten  long,  six  high.  A  paper 
window  lets  in  a  little  light,  but  there  is  no  ventilation, 
and  the  smell  of  the  Orient  chokes  you  as  you  enter. 
On  a  mat  at  the  end,  seated  cross-kneed,  is  our  acquaint- 
ance Willis,  in  fair  hair  and  Western  dress.  A  noisy, 
middle-aged  man  has  taken  a  place  at  his  side,  and  is 
interrogating  him  for  the  benefit  of  the  crowd. 

"  How  many  years  have  you  passed  ? "  in  a  loud 
voice. 

"  Twenty-five,"  said  Willis. 

"  Twenty-five  ?  You  look  to  me  about  seventy.  What 
has  made  your  hair  turn  white  ?  " 

"  It  didn't  turn,  it  was  always  so.  I'm  that  kind  of 
human  being,"  said  the  victim. 


IN  PING-YANG  27 

"  So  ?     Where  are  you  from  ?  " 

"  America." 

"  And  where's  that  ?  " 

"  Many  miles  distant  away  over  the  sea." 

"  How  many  miles  long  is  your  country  ?  " 

"  Why  I  don't  believe  I  know,"  said  Willis. 

"  Fancy !  "  said  the  speaker  to  the  crowd.  "  He  don't 
know  how  long  his  country  is.  How  many  brothers  are 
you  ?  " 

"  Five,"  was  the  answer. 

"  Indeed,  your  Eight  Stars  are  evidently  all  right  Why 
have  you  come  ?  " 

"  To  teach." 

"  Have  you  a  son  ?  "  asked  the  middle-aged  man. 

"  No,  I  have  no  son." 

«  Why  is  that  ?  " 

"  I  am  not  married." 

"  Whe-w-w-w !  Twenty-five  and  not  married !  Look 
at  that  for  poverty,"  speaking  to  the  crowd.  "  A  man 
who  hasn't  enough  at  twenty-five  to  marry,  his  god  ain't 
good  for  much.  Can  you  read  books  ?  " 

"  Are  you  not  cold  with  those  clothes  on  ?  " 

"  No,  perfectly  warm." 

"  Why  are  your  pants  so  tight  ?  " 

"  It  is  our  custom." 

"  What  are  those  things  ?  " 

"  Buttons." 

"  What  are  they  made  out  of?  " 

"  I  really  don't  know.     I  think  it  is  a  kind  of  wood." 

"  He  doesn't  know  what  those  beads  are  made  out  of, 
that  he  has  on  his  coat.  Well,  we'll  come  again  to- 
morrow and  see  you ;  rest  in  peace,"  and  they  depart  to 
make  way  for  others. 


28  THE  VANGUARD 

So  the  long  days  pass  for  Willis,  who  is  buried  under 
a  surging  mass  of  humanity,  that  never  ceases  to  trample 
over  him,  till  his  heart  fails,  and  his  head  throbs,  and  his 
eyes  grow  dim.  This  is  the  "  missionary  business  "  that 
the  Japanese  booked  him  for,  "  in  order  to  eat  and  live." 

His  dinner  was  brought  in  on  a  little  table,  such  as  is 
used  in  Korea,  and  he  ate  with  chopsticks,  while  number- 
less curiosity-seekers  circled  about  watching  him,  and 
passed  remarks  on  his  manner  of  eating.  The  East 
requires  you  to  chew  with  audible  satisfaction,  and  to 
make  smacking  signs  of  appreciation,  and  this  Willis 
failed  to  do.  He  quietly  supplied  the  needs  of  hunger, 
and  then  resumed  his  task  of  meeting  all  that  called  on 
him. 

For  variety,  he  used  occasionally  to  take  a  walk,  where 
he  could  escape  the  crowd  and  creep  out  along  the  city 
wall  to  a  high  peak  on  which  a  temple  stood.  Here  he 
would  sit  on  an  overhanging  point,  and  watch  the  great 
river  wind  its  way  off  towards  the  sea.  His  thoughts 
would  wander  home  to  the  hills  and  rivers  of  his  native 
land,  and  to  a  face  there,  young,  thoughtful,  and  pretty  ; 
a  face  that  in  spite  of  all  he  could  do  would  come  before 
his  eyes ;  but  when  such  moments  came  overwhelmingly, 
he  would  turn  his  back  on  them  and  quiet  his  soul. 

How  to  take  this  citadel  and  the  northland  of  Korea, 
was  the  plan  and  purpose  of  his  thought.  That  was  the 
first  point  to  be  won,  that  tangle  of  low  huts,  with  warp 
and  woof  of  tile  and  thatch.  Now  that  he  was  out  on  the 
hill,  word  had  gone  abroad  that  the  American  was  to  be 
seen.  Groups  of  people,  distinguishable  in  white,  gath- 
ered at  all  points  of  view.  From  many  directions,  too, 
there  would  be  a  rush  o[  men  and  boys,  hurrying  to  get 
near  this  curious  stranger,  that  had  come  to  live  in  town. 


IN   PING-YANG  29 

But  there  was  little  incivility  or  rudeness,  and  no  attempt 
at  stone-throwing. 

Ping-yang,  three  thousand  years  of  age,  was  watching 
this  citizen  of  a  new  republic,  desirous  to  know  what 
kind  of  man  he  was.  Already  it  said,  "  He  is  gentle  and 
well-behaved ;  he  does  not  drink,  or  keep  a  disorderly 
house.  He  is  not  a  bad  man  except  for  the  peculiar 
doctrine  that  he  talks  of.  True  he  is  to  be  pitied  for 
being  born  a  barbarian,  which  is  not  his  fault." 

One  afternoon  as  Willis,  on  his  way  home,  turned  into 
the  street  leading  from  the  East  Gate,  he  found  it  blocked 
by  a  crowd  of  men  viewing  a  fearful  fight  that  was  going 
on  between  two  Koreans.  Each  had  the  other  by  the 
top-knot,  and  a  tug-of-war  was  in  process,  after  the 
manner  of  Oriental  savagery.  One  man,  hard-visaged, 
thick-jawed,  stout-built,  was  called  Ko,  centurion,  once 
dumb,  now  able  to  speak ;  the  other,  no  less  forbidding, 
was  taller,  and  if  anything,  more  powerful.  "  Smack  " 
went  a  blow  of  the  open  hand  on  the  cheek ;  "  thud," 
said  a  kick,  straight  from  the  thigh,  that  staggered  the 
tall  man  and  made  him  catch  for  breath.  "  Y-o-u-r 
M-o-t-h-e-r  .  .  ."  says  Ko,  muttering  between  his 
teeth  an  oath  in  the  Korean  language,  and  giving  a 
second  foot-blow  into  the  pit  of  the  stomach,  like  the 
kick  of  a  horse,  so  that  the  long  man  let  go  and  toppled 
over  against  the  wall. 

Just  then  Willis  caught  Ko  by  the  arm,  held  him  back 
and  said,  "  Why  fight?  "  If  Ko  had  met  the  spirit  from 
the  shrine  on  the  hill,  he  could  not  have  been  more 
cowed  than  he  was  when  collared  by  this  tall  American. 

The  people  made  way,  while  Willis  marched  him  along 
to  the  house  under  the  tiled  veranda,  where  the  plaster 
had  fallen  from  the  wall. 


30  THE  VANGUARD 

"  What  is  your  name  ?  "  asked  Willis. 

There  was  no  answer,  and  before  Willis  could  get  him 
inside  he  had  twisted  himself  free,  and  was  off  down  the 
street. 

On  into  the  night  his  room  was  the  rendezvous  for  all 
classes.  Men  with  Mongol  thoughts  and  fetid  breath  sat 
cross-kneed  about  him,  shouting  all  manner  of  useless 
questions,  over  and  over,  proposing  that  he  measure  his 
strength  of  arm  with  them,  asking  for  his  hat  and  boots 
to  try  on. 

By  force  of  pressure  he  would  finally  clear  the  room, 
and  make  fast  the  door  by  passing  the  iron  ring  over  the 
pin.  Then  his  stout,  round-faced  boy,  Black  Dragon 
(Kam-yong-ee),  would  come  to  spread  his  mat  on  the 
heated  floor. 

"  Master,"  says  he,  "  these  people  who  call  on  you  and 
stay  all  day  are  low  down  Koreans,  not  a  gentleman 
among  them ;  I  wish  they  would  not  come." 

"  No  ?  "  said  Willis.  "  But  I  want  to  meet  all  and  tell 
all  of  them  how  God  loves  them,  and  wants  them  to  lis- 
ten to  Him,  besides  He  wants  you  too,  Dragon,  do  you 
know  that  ?  " 

"  Oh,  yes,  I'll  do  anything  the  master  says.  To-mor- 
row I'll  sit  in  front  and  say, '  Master's  gone  out,'  and  then 
they'll  go  away." 

The  Dragon  was  fifteen  years  old  though  he  looked 
only  about  twelve.  He  had  a  long  queue  of  hair  down 
his  back,  plaited  like  a  girl,  that  left  a  grease  streak  along 
the  spinal  column  of  his  white  jacket.  He  was  a  faithful 
Korean  boy  was  the  Dragon,  and  would  lie  all  day  long 
if  it  could  in  any  way  help  his  master. 

Besides  the  Dragon  there  was  the  language  teacher,  Mr. 
You,  who  came  every  day  to  help.  He  was  very  vain, 


IN  PING-YANG  31 

and  very  empty,  but  peculiarly  faithful  within  the  limits 
of  his  narrow  world.  He  would  sit  on  the  floor  beside 
Willis  and  tell  him  words  the  livelong  day,  when  the 
crowds  kept  out,  choso  (good),  chochanso  (bad),  pap  (rice), 
tone  (money),  pap  mugusso  (I  ate  my  rice),  tone  chuosso 
(I  paid  the  money). 

Mr.  You  and  the  Dragon  and  Willis  always  had  prayer 
together  before  they  stretched  out  on  the  hot  floor  to 
sleep.  This  night  Willis  read  from  his  Testament  in 
Korean:  "But — I — to — you — say,  your — enemies — love 
— and — for — your — persecutor — pray,  if — so— you — do, 
your  —  Heavenly  —  Father's — children — you — will — be, 
for  —  He  — makes — the — sun  — on — the — good — and — 
on — the  —  bad — to — shine,  and — rain — to — the — right- 
eous— and — unrighteous — gives." 

The  close  stifling  room,  with  its  microscopic  armies 
crawling  forth  to  wage  war  on  the  sleepers,  was  all  a  part 
of  the  fight,  on  which  Willis  had  staked  everything. 


IV 

THE  TONG-HAKS 

THERE  are  but  few  earthquakes  in  Korea,  once 
or  twice  in  ten  years'  time  foundations  have  been 
felt  to  palpitate  slightly  and  then  regain  com- 
posure, but  a  heaving  up  with  houses  and  chimneys 
dancing  is  unknown.  Japan  has  a  monopoly  of  such 
seismic  caperings.  There  are,  however,  mental  upheavals 
common  to  the  peninsula,  that  shake  the  fabric  of  state 
from  end  to  end,  until  rumor  runs  wild  and  men  are  al- 
most crazed  with  fear.  One  of  these  was  the  Tong-hak 
insurrection.  Tong  means  East,  and  hak  means  learning, 
or  teaching,  the  Teaching  of  the  East,  to  offset  the  Teach- 
ing of  the  West,  that  was  already  making  itself  felt  in 
and  about  the  cities  of  Ping-yang  and  Seoul. 

In  a  lonely  village  among  the  hills  of  Whang-ha  a 
group  of  dark  visaged  Orientals  have  met  to  celebrate 
the  rites  of  Tong-hak.  They  had  had  a  brush  with  the 
soldiers  of  the  capital,  and  half  their  number  had  been 
killed  or  scattered.  They  had  thought  they  were  bullet 
proof,  and  had  danced  and  prayed  themselves  into  ec- 
static madness,  but  once  in  line  with  whistling  Mausers, 
they  found  that  all  their  tablets  and  spells  counted  for 
nothing.  Old  Whang  had  been  left  doubled  up  in  the 
dust,  eyes  glazed,  and  bleeding  at  the  mouth.  Shin  was 
hit  through  the  shoulder  but  had  escaped,  and  was  lying 
in  a  corner  of  the  room  bemoaning  his  fate,  with  cuttle- 
fish, flies,  and  willow  buds  plastered  on  the  wound.  A 
3* 


THE   TONG-HAKS  33 

lot  of  them  had  been  taken  prisoners,  and  were  locked 
up  in  the  magistrate's  Yamen  five  miles  distant 

"I  tell  you,"  says  Captain  Pang,  "  there  is  no  help  for 
us  but  to  get  aid  from  China.  I'll  start  to-morrow  with 
this  lad  and  make  the  journey,  with  the  assistance  of  the 
gods,  and  we'll  win  yet,"  and  they  all  said, "  Let  us  pray." 
They  jumped  about  the  room  too,  calling  on  the  god  to 
come  down,  "  Come  down ! " 

But  there  was  little  spiritual  enjoyment,  and  Captain 
Pang  was  evidently  under  a  cloud  They  had  had  a 
day  of  cold  steel  and  lead,  and  it  had  been  an  eye-opener 
to  some,  and  an  eye-shutter  to  others.  They  had  been 
taught,  and  truly  believed,  that  they  were  invulnerable, 
and  lo,  the  spell  was  broken. 

Pang's  proposal  to  go  to  China  seemed  poor  consola- 
tion to  those  who  expected  to  be  hounded  out  next  day 
by  the  King's  soldiers  and  shot  like  badgers,  but  he  per- 
sisted, the  god  at  last  came  down  and  they  all  agreed. 

Along  the  mountainside  and  through  a  gap  in  the 
hills,  a  narrow  path  crawled  off  into  the  moonlight  and 
the  distance,  away  to  the  end  of  the  plain,  where  was  the 
town  of  Ul-chung.  Here  in  the  Yamen  ten  Tong-haks 
were  locked  up  awaiting  trial  next  day.  It  is  past  mid- 
night and  already  the  roosters  are  crowing  here  and 
there.  Haggard  faces  move  dimly  about  The  guards 
had  little  sleep,  for  the  day  before  had  seen  a  battle  with 
the  Tong-haks,  and  no  one  knew  but  what  the  morning 
would  bring  hordes  of  them  from  the  hills  to  rob,  murder 
and  pillage.  In  the  prison,  the  ten  captives,  some 
wounded,  some  unscathed  lie  scattered  about  on  the 
wooden  floors  stolid,  stupid,  indifferent,  dead  as  logs  of 
wood  to  their  actual  surroundings  and  conditions.  Here 
is  a  man  who  was  captain,  a  friend  of  Pang's,  his  name 


34  THE  VANGUARD 

is  Chu.  On  the  other  side,  flung  out  on  the  floor,  lies  a 
prisoner  who,  a  moment  later,  sits  up,  wipes  his  eye  and 
looks  about  him.  It  is  Ko,  the  centurion.  What  brings 
him  here?  Is  he  a  Tong-hak?  No!  Ko  is  in  prison 
for  the  reasons  which  the  reader  shall  know  later  on. 

"  What's  your  name  ?  "  asks  Ko. 

"  An,"  says  Chu. 

"  Are  you  a  Tong-hak  ?" 

"  By  no  means." 

"  Then  how  came  you  here  ?  " 

"  Why,  I  was  coming  through  the  woods  yesterday, 
and  soldiers  caught  me  and  I  am  here." 

"  You  never  did  it  ?  "  [Tong-hak],  asks  Ko. 

"  Never  !     But  what's  your  name  ?  "  asks  Chu. 

"  My  name  is  Ko,"  was  the  reply. 

"  What  were  you  run  in  for  ?  " 

"  NothinY' 

A  few  hours  later,  Mr.  Yan,  an  officer  of  the  third  de- 
gree, dressed  in  robes  of  silk  and  shining  headgear,  was 
having  breakfast,  seated  on  his  embroidered  cushions  with 
screens  behind  him,  and  odd  boxes  piled  up  in  the  cor- 
ners of  the  room,  somewhat  ornamental,  somewhat  dis- 
orderly in  appearance. 

He  was  soft-handed,  silk-textured,  exquisite,  immacu- 
late. How  such  a  perfectly  ordered  human  being  could 
be  possible  for  a  land  of  mud  like  Korea,  seems  a 
mystery. 

There  were  no  prayers  in  the  Yamen  to  be  said,  or 
other  religious  exercises  that  take  time,  for  Mr.  Yan  is  a 
Confucianist,  and  prays  only  to  his  ancestors  on  certain 
set  days  of  the  year.  He  washed  his  mouth  out  with  salt 
water,  and  had  his  pipe  prepared  by  one  of  the  many  at- 
tendants. "  Iree-o-ne-ra ! "  [Come  here  !]  he  roared  out 


THE   TONG-HAKS  35 

in  a  voice  that  seemed  all  out  of  proportion  to  his  silk 
and  satin  physique,  and  was  answered  by  "  Yea-a-a ! " 
A  couple  of  Yamen-runners  [official  police]  instantly  ap- 
peared, and  stood  like  statues  before  him. 

"  Bring  out  those  Tong-haks,"  said  he,  "  one  by 
one,"  and  Captain  Chu  is  led  forth  from  the  prison. 

"  What's  your  name  ?  "  asked  the  magistrate. 

"  What's  your  na-me  ?  "  repeated  the  writer  at  the  door. 

"  Wat's  yer  NA-A-ME  ?  "  sang  out  the  yamen-runners. 

"  My  name  is  An,"  said  Chu. 

"  Lay  him  out,"  said  the  magistrate. 

"  Lay  him  o-u-t,"  repeated  the  writer. 

"  Lay  him  OU-U-U-T  !  "  roared  the  runners,  and  with  a 
chorus  of  yells  and  yea-a-a-s,  Chu  is  pinioned,  his  arms 
fastened  behind,  close  up  to  the  shoulder-blades,  till  his 
hollow  chest  reminds  you  of  a  puffer  pigeon.  His  knees 
are  tied,  and  his  lower  limbs  are  bound  around  the 
ankles.  Ko,  the  centurion,  is  watching  him  through  the 
prison  bars.  They  thrust  a  stick  through  the  chink  of 
the  lower  limbs  and  pry  till  the  tibia  and  fibula  bend  and 
crack  from  pressure.  "  Ya-a-a  !  "  yelled  the  prisoner. 
"  Kill  me,  kill  me." 

"  Now,  what's  your  name  ?  " 

"  I-go  !  I-go  !     Chu,  Chu.     Whew  !  " 

Snap  go  the  leg  bones,  and  the  wail  of  despair  that 
goes  up  from  the  prisoner,  makes  the  cold  sweat  go 
down  Ko's  back. 

Chu  is  tossed  aside  to  think  over  his  sins  and  his 
broken  legs,  while,  one  by  one,  his  comrades  come  out 
and  share  his  fate.  When  all  are  tortured,  by  ways  and 
means  indescribable,  they  are  dragged  to  a  hill  and  be- 
headed— a  warning  to  evil-doers,  their  heads  being  hung 
in  the  sun,  and  their  bodies  left  to  the  ravens. 


36  THE  VANGUARD 

Ko  swears  that  if  ever  he  gets  out  of  prison  he  will 
never  get  in  again.  What  he  had  witnessed  gave  him 
no  relish  for  Tong-hak,  and  the  cracking  of  the  bones 
sounded  in  his  soul. 

Captain  Pang  had  persuaded  his  friends  and  family  that 
he  could  get  troops  from  China.  With  one  dollar  and  a 
half  in  his  pocket,  he  and  his  servant  make  their  way 
over  the  hills  and  out  into  the  plains  of  North  Whang-ha. 
His  real  plan  was  to  escape  eastward  to  the  mountains 
of  Kang-wun  and  hide,  but  as  the  dollar  and  a  half 
began  to  vanish  away,  he  grew  anxious  over  their  future. 
How  were  they  to  live  ?  He  had  heard  of  pyuk-gok, 
living  without  eating,  but  he  had  no  books  to  teach  him 
how  it  was  attained  to.  He  must  find  out  pyuk-gok  at 
all  costs.  As  he  thought  over  and  over  the  possible 
ways  to  learn  this  doctrine,  he  remembered  that  he  had  a 
cousin  living  near  the  Tatong  River,  who  had  had  to  do 
with  some  strange  teaching  or  other,  but  whether  it  in- 
cluded pyuk-gok  or  not,  he  did  not  know.  His  cousin's 
place  too  was  out  of  their  line  of  march,  but  hunger 
drives  men  fast  and  far,  and  ere  the  day  closed,  he  was 
on  his  way  to  his  cousin's.  He  arrived  at  the  gate,  which 
was  merely  an  opening  in  the  corn  stalk  paling,  and  saw 
dropped  at  the  door  of  the  guest-room,  a  pair  of  black 
leather  shoes,  with  strings  and  holes,  such  as  he  had  never 
seen  before.  They  were  not  like  Chinese  shoes,  much 
better  made,  evidently  belonging  to  some  stranger  from 
another  world.  The  shoes  alarmed  and  discouraged 
him,  and  he  was  on  the  point  of  turning  away,  when 
pyuk-gok  came  to  mind.  He  coughed,  as  they  do  in 
Korea,  instead  of  rapping  at  the  door.  Out  came  his 
cousin  with  glad,  shining  face. 

Pang,  in  haste,  scarcely  greeted  him  before  he  asked, 


THE  TONG-HAKS  37 

«  Do  you  know  of  pyuk-gok,  or  does  it  belong  to  the 
doctrine  you  have  been  studying?  If  so  let  me  have  it; 
if  not,  I  must  go  at  once." 

"Pyuk-gokr'  repeated  the  cousin.  "No!  no!  That's 
all  our  old  Korean  superstition ;  there's  no  such  tiling, 
but  there  is  better  than  that,  come  and  see  the  Western 
Teacher." 

"  No ! "  said  Pang,  "  I  want  pyuk-gok  or  nothing,  no 
fraifrjri?n  shall  talk  to  me." 

But  the  cousin's  kindly  words  prevailed,  and  Captain 
Pang,  Tong-hak,  outlaw,  dropped  his  string  shoes  be- 
side the  black  leather  foot-gear  of  the  Westerner  and 
stepped  in. 

Willis  rose  to  greet  him,  slight  and  tall,  with  his  whitish 
hair,  that  Pang  put  down  to  age  and  infirmity. 

They  spoke  according  to  the  manner  of  the  East. 
"  How  old  are  you  ?  "  asked  Pang. 

"  Twenty-five,"  said  Willis. 

"  But  your  hair  is  white,  I  thought  you  were  seventy. 
I  am  forty-five  myself." 

Bug  listened  to  many  words  that  night,  and  also  read 
through  a  Chinese  book  called  "  The  Gate  of  Wisdom 
and  Virtue,"  for  he  was  a  rebel  captain  and  could  read. 
Death,  and  fear,  and  peace,  and  joy,  were  all  patched 
together  in  one  book,  and  not  a  word  about  how  a  man 
was  to  get  his  rice. 

But  Willis  looked  sincere  and  true,  and  his  words  did 
not  sound  like  Korean  lies,  so  that  Pang  was  mystified. 
"  I  shall  follow,"  said  he,  «  and  see  the  end.  If  I  am 
arrested  and  die,  why  I  die." 


SIR  JAMES 

ANOTHER  Tong-hak  dragged  his  way  through 
the  woods  and  down  to  the  seashore.     He  had 
been  shot  in  the  arm,  and  he  called  on  his  mother 
and  the  gods  to  save  him.     "  For  my  sins,"  he  wailed, 
"  here  I  am  dead,  oh,  mother  !  " 

There  were  junks  tied  at  the  village  landing,  one 
ready  to  sail  towards  the  capital.  Grimy  with  blood  and 
earth,  the  crawling  fugitive  made  application  to  the 
skipper.  The  latter,  a  fat  bronze-faced  Korean,  looked 
with  suspicion  at  the  bandaged  arm  and  marks  of  blood. 
"  Plenty  of  Tong-haks  these  days,"  said  he. 

"  So  they  say,"  said  the  wounded  man.  "  I  have 
heard  of  them  but  haven't  seen.  My  wound  is  from  a 
tiger.  I  was  gathering  wood  for  my  old  mother,  me  and 
my  boy,  and  just  on  the  edge  of  the  Bill  Rocks  a 
mountain  chief  sprang  on  the  lad,  and  in  my  efforts  to 
save  him  I  was  wounded ;  but  the  boy  is  dead,  alas !  alas  ! 
he  is  dead,  dead,"  and  real  tears  rolled  down  his  face. 
"  He  was  all  I  had,  so  I  desire  to  die  too.  I  shall  die." 

This  was  a  good  man  who  loved  his  mother,  and  had 
risked  his  life  to  save  his  boy,  thought  the  skipper. 
"  Why  do  you  wish  to  go  to  the  capital  ?  "  he  asked. 

"  For  no  other  reason,"  said  the  Tong-hak.     "  There 
is  a  foreign  man  there  who  knows  how  to  heal  wounds, 
and  has  also  medicine  for  mountain  lords.     I  must  get 
strength  to  kill  this  devil-beast,  then  I  die  in  peace." 
38 


SIR  JAMES  39 

The  skipper  took  him  on  board,  and  over  the  waste  of 
the  Yellow  Sea  they  sailed  away. 

The  arm  pained  him,  but  not  the  lie.  He  had  been 
shot  by  the  soldiers,  and  chased  headlong,  blinded  and 
bewildered  through  the  woods.  His  was  only  an  ordinary 
lie,  such  as  the  Far  East  deals  in,  as  it  does  in  fans  and 
head  ornaments, — something  necessary  to  the  eternal 
fitness  of  things.  There  is  no  conscience  left,  east  of  the 
sixtieth  meridian,  that  would  tick  off  such  a  lie  as  this. 
It  is  just  an  ordinary,  plain,  every-day,  common  kind  of 
lie,  such  as  all  indulge  in,  and  all  believe. 

Soon,  for  that  was  his  name,  can  still  see  the  sand 
banks  as  they  rolled  up  that  afternoon  when  the  tide 
went  out,  great  sickening  sand  banks.  All  the  crabs  and 
crawling  things  seemed  to  have  been  shot  through  the 
arm  for  their  sins'  sake,  and  were  suffering  agony.  He 
does  not  know  how  he  found  his  way  to  the  government 
hospital,  or  who  helped  him.  He  had  offered  his  head- 
band as  fare,  but  the  skipper  said,  "  Never  mind,  pay  me 
later." 

Bruce,  whose  name  was  already  known  far  and  wide, 
was  the  one  he  sought.  Perhaps  fear  of  detection  had 
overcome  Soon's  fear  of  the  foreigner,  and  the  mystery 
that  enshrouded  him.  Here  he  was,  with  his  arm  plastered 
with  refuse,  swollen,  dogged  by  pains,  and  fearful  as  to 
smell ;  and  now  his  eyes  rested  upon  Bruce,  the  keen- 
visaged  but  kindly  Westerner.  Here  were  knives  and 
glittering  implements,  and  many  soft  and  surprising  odors. 

Bruce  inquired  as  to  how  long. 

"  Five  days." 

"  How  did  it  happen  ?  " 

Soon,  ready  with  a  new  invention,  said  he  had  fallen  over 
the  edge  of  the  Bill  Rocks  and  struck  on  a  sharpened  snag. 


40  THE  VANGUARD 

"You  fell  on  the  Bill  Rocks,  did  you?"  said  the 
doctor,  "  and  then  the  Bill  Rocks  shot  you  through  the 
arm.  What  kind  of  guns  do  the  Rocks  carry  ?  " 

Dear  me,  thought  Soon,  he  knows  that  I  have  been 
shot  and  his  eyes  are  looking  right  through  me.  I'll 
confess.  "  The  soldiers  shot  me,  but  I  wasn't  a  real 
Tong-haker." 

"  You  were  just  helping  them  ?  "  said  Bruce,  as  he  ex- 
amined the  arm. 

"  Yes,"  said  the  man,  "  but  please  spare  me." 

Blood  poisoning  had  set  in,  and  Soon's  days  seemed 
numbered.  Rapidly  knives  and  instruments  were  got 
ready,  all  antiseptically  clean,  in  the  land  that  advocates 
filth  for  healing,  and  Soon  remembers  going  off  into  a 
spiritual  existence,  where  he  wandered  very  far  from  his 
mortal  body. 

At  last  he  came  back ;  he  had  had  a  dream  and  was 
rested  now ;  his  arm  was  gone  and  the  pain.  Here  was 
Bruce,  the  wonderful  Western  man,  with  his  hand  on  his 
pulse  and  a  peculiar  glass,  spirit-charm,  no  doubt,  under 
his  tongue.  How  quiet  he  felt  and  safe  ! 

There  were  others  in  the  ward,  all  Koreans,  who 
looked  for  a  call  or  a  word  of  encouragement  from 
Bruce.  His  name  was  everywhere,  for  he  was  a  very 
great  man  and  waited  on  the  king,  but  he  had  time  for 
coolies  and  low  class  men,  too.  Soon  did  not  know  why 
this  should  be.  He  took  his  treatment  each  day,  ate  the 
food  given  him,  and  grew  more  and  more  to  wonder  as 
the  "  great  man  "  (ta-iri)  came  by.  "  I  don't  dare  to  lie," 
said  Soon,  "  or  he'll  look  right  through  me." 

A  month  spent  in  the  ward  had  resulted  in  Soon's  full 
conviction  that  Bruce  was  a  man  to  be  revered,  on 
account  of  his  wisdom  and  superior  excellence.  He  saw 


SIR  JAMES  41 

no  flaws.  This  surgeon  was  perfection.  Later,  he  went 
north  to  sing  his  praises.  "  He  had  to  take  my  arm  off," 
said  Soon,  "  and  he  did  it,  and  it  never  hurt  me ;  besides, 
he  left  the  spiritual  fingers  undamaged,  for  I  feel  them 
still — there  they  are,"  and  he  pointed  to  where  his  hand 
should  be.  All  over  the  north  word  was  being  passed 
regarding  the-excellent  physician. 

Korea  is  a  land  that  has  no  newspapers  that  tell  of  the 
doings  in  the  capital  Rumor  and  hearsay  are  all  the 
natives  have  to  depend  on,  and  the  rapidity  with  which 
these  fly  is  truly  surprising.  A  postal  express  could 
scarcely  outdo  them.  In  interest  and  picturesqueness,  it 
would  fall  far  behind.  All  the  way  to  the  outskirts  of 
the  empire  speeds  the  word  from  tongue  to  tongue, 
growing  in  intensity,  as  the  miles  increase.  If  it  is  a 
good  story,  before  it  reaches  the  far  north  it  is  intensely 
good,  embellished  by  the  best  hands  at  story -telling, 
each  one  of  whom,  as  he  passes  it  on,  adds  his  touch  at 
ornamentation  and  heightening  of  color ;  if  the  story  is 
bad  it  grows  unspeakably  vile  long  before  two  hundred 
miles  are  covered.  So  rumor  may  sweep  over  the  Far 
East  on  angel  wing;  or  again,  it  may  flap  by  like 
Abbadon,  forked,  and  winged  and  tailed.  Rumors  were 
afloat  about  Willis,  and  about  Bruce  the  doctor. 

The  latter  rode  an  immense  horse,  higher  than  the 
houses  of  Seoul ;  he  had  taken  off  a  man's  head  and  put 
it  on  again.  He  was  civilized  and  did  not  eat  human 
flesh  like  the  rest  of  the  foreign  barbarians,  though  he 
must  be  sorely  tempted  by  his  calling.  All  the  country 
people  who  listened  said  he  was  a  "  number  one  "  man. 
The  King  had  honored  him.  He  had  ridden  through 
the  central  gates  into  the  palace.  He  was  now  Champan 
Bruce,  and  wore  the  insignia  of  knighthood ;  with  his 


42  THE  VANGUARD 

jade  and  gold  buttons  he  guided  his  horse  through  for- 
bidden archways  and  fraternized  with  royalty,  yet  lent 
his  ear  kindly  to  the  old  havering  woman,  with  cracked 
voice  and  wrinkled  jaw.  What  a  strange  being  he  was  ! 
He  was  greater  than  Willis,  yes,  for  he  had  rank,  as  well 
as  moral  excellence.  Willis  had  no  rank  and  no  horse, 
nothing  but  a  spotted  dog,  and  he  did  not  know  how  to 
lance  even  a  boil,  not  to  speak  of  sewing  on  a  man's  head. 
Rumor  has  usually  some  elements  of  truth  and  so  in 
this  case.  There  were  truly  wonderful  feats  of  surgery, 
that  stood  out  startlingly  in  this  unclean,  unscientific 
world.  It  is  true  Bruce  rode  a  fine  horse,  who  arched 
his  neck  and  bore  himself  like  a  conqueror  among  the 
kicking,  squealing,  jingling  native  ponies.  It  was  true 
the  King  had  honored  him.  So  many  times  within  the 
palace  his  cheery  voice  was  heard,  and  so  many  substan- 
tial benefits  and  assurances  had  come  from  him,  that 
even  Oriental  majesty  was  grateful,  and,  on  a  certain 
evening,  Bruce  was  summoned  to  the  palace.  All  the 
officers  of  state  were  there,  the  Prime  Minister,  Foreign 
and  Home  Secretaries,  decked  out  in  robes  innumerable, 
layer  on  layer,  and  color  over  color.  In  this  atmosphere, 
intensified  by  Pagoda  lanterns  and  hangings  of  the 
Farthest  East,  his  majesty  received  Bruce,  smiled  and 
said,  "  We  ignorant  ones  here,  in  our  Eastern  Kingdom, 
have  only  just  made  our  first  acquaintance  with  the  hon- 
ored sojourners  from  the  noble  West.  We  have  looked 
upon  and  admired  their  wisdom  and  exalted  virtue. 
Chief  among  them,  however,  with  whom  none  can  com- 
pare, is  our  excellent  physician,  Peruse,  who  understands 
the  elements  of  the  human  frame,  and  the  emotions  and 
thoughts  that  underlie  it ;  whose  knife  cuts  but  gives  no 
pain ;  whose  medicines  are  pleasant  to  the  taste,  yet  effi- 


SIR  JAMES  43 

cacious ;  who  has  worn  himself  out  in  our  service.  We 
desire  to  confer  upon  him  the  insignificant  order  of 
Champan.  As  he  rides  his  tall  horse  let  all  the  people 
do  him  homage,  knight  of  the  Eastern  Empire." 

Bruce  thanked  them  in  his  quiet  and  appreciative 
manner,  and  then  had  pinned  upon  him  the  gold  and 
jade  buttons,  with  other  insignia  of  the  order.  From 
now  on,  he  was  Champan  Bruce,  or  Sir  James,  you 
might  call  him,  physician  to  the  court,  and  to  all  the 
poor  diseased  incurables  who  chose  to  come  flocking  to 
him,  occupying  his  time,  and  claiming  him  for  their 
service. 

In  the  line  of  visitors  there  were  occasionally  princes 
and  members  of  the  royal  clan,  but  the  daily  average  of 
Sir  James'  acquaintance  fell  far  below  zero  in  the  social 
scale,  lepers,  creatures  dogged  by  incurable  disorder,  with 
twisted  and  bleared  faces,  wending  their  way  mecca-ward 
in  search  of  help  and  deliverance. 

He  was  always  patient.  Those  he  couldn't  cure  he 
cheered.  He  was  a  friend  to  all  the  world. 

"  What  is  the  reason  you  do  this  for  us  ? "  asks  the 
man  from  the  north. 

"  Do  you  know  Willis  ?  "  inquires  Sir  James. 

"  Yes,  everybody  knows  him,"  was  the  reply. 

"  Then  go  to  Willis,  and  he  will  tell  you  why  I've 
come ;  go  and  ask  him  and  listen  very  carefully  to  his 
words.  There  is  more  in  his  words  than  in  my  work." 

"  But  you  are  greater  than  Willis,  he  is  not  a  knight," 
said  the  far-north  man. 

"  All  my  wish,  and  all  my  work,"  replied  Sir  James, 
"  is  t.o  incline  you  to  hear  his  words,"  and  the  crowd 
went  home  with  their  faces  towards  Willis. 


VI 

KIM'S  VICTORY 

ONE  of  the  men  who  had  seen  Sir  James  and  re- 
membered  his   words,   called   on   Willis.     The 
Dragon  announced  with  a  look  of  disgust,  that 
there  was  a  man  at  the  door. 

Willis,  who  was  alone,  said,  «  Let  him  in ! " 

The  stranger  was  thin,  and  spare,  with  refined  Eastern 
face,  tanned  and  marked  somewhat  with  the  lights  and 
shades  of  troubled  fortune.  He  was  quiet  and  gentle- 
manly, and  from  the  first  gave  an  impression  of  sincerity, 
his  look  being  that  of  an  honest  man.  After  the  saluta- 
tion of  peace  he  told  Willis  that  he  was  a  school-teacher, 
named  Kim,  acquainted  by  hearsay  with  the  doctrine, 
anxious  to  know  it  definitely.  He  had  come  also  to  ask 
why  he  had  left  his  home  and  what  was  his  purpose  in 
this  life  of  exile. 

"  It  centres,"  said  Willis,  "  in  a  man  named  Jesus,  who 
proved  to  be  God." 

"  When  did  he  live  ?  "  asked  Kim. 

"  Eighteen  hundred  years  ago,  in  Judea,  an  Eastern 
land  lying  beyond  China  and  Persia." 

"  And  your  sacred  books  ?  "  asked  Kim. 

"  Sin-Koo-Yak"  [Old  and  New  Testaments],  said  Willis. 

"  How  do  they  differ  ?  " 

"  The  Old  was  written  many  years  ago,  pointing  to  His 
coming ;  the  New  tells  what  He  did  when  on  earth,  and 
how  we  ought  to  live." 

44 


KIM'S   VICTORY  45 

Willis  talked  to  him  earnestly,  tenderly,  and  read  many 
passages.  Kim  watched  every  line  of  expression,  anxious 
to  know,  not  so  much  what  he  said,  as  the  man  himself. 
Why  should  it  make  any  difference  to  this  foreigner 
whether  he,  a  Korean,  believed  or  not  ?  What  was  this 
strange  doctrine  that  set  men  out  hunting  men  ? 

"  Have  the  women  any  part  in  this  ?  "  asked  Kim. 

"  Women  have  souls  and  spirits  too,  haven't  they  ?  " 
inquired  Willis.  "  Christ  came  to  save  them ;  read  this, 
and  this,  and  this." 

"  I  always  thought  women  had  no  souls.  And  coolies 
and  hired  laborers  ?  " 

"  Coolies  too,  all  are  alike  before  God,"  was  the 
answer. 

Kim  was  astounded,  he,  a  Confucianist,  had  offered  his 
sacrifices  and  said  his  prayers  faithfully,  but  it  never 
dawned  on  him  before,  so  monstrous  was  his  pride,  that 
coolies  and  women  could  count  with  God.  True  he  had 
a  wife,  and  rather  liked  her,  but  she  was  his  servant,  and 
not  a  real  person ;  as  for  mutual  love  and  equality  it  was 
absurd. 

"  But  it  must  be,"  said  Willis,  without  a  falter  in  his 
tone.  "  God  demands  it.  On  these  great  questions,  He 
leaves  no  deciding  to  us.  Former  teaching  or  custom 
must  give  way  when  He  appears.  Come,"  said  he,  "  en- 
ter into  His  kingdom,  and  bring  your  wife  with  you. 
Kneel  beside  her  when  you  pray,  read  with  her  when 
you  read  these  words,  and  your  little  home  will  be  a 
palace." 

Kim  had  a  conscience,  and  it  responded,  but  his  mind 
said,  "  I'd  be  ashamed  to  be  seen  praying  and  reading 
with  my  wife." 

"  How  about  ancestors  ?  "  asked  Kim.     "  Our  custom 


46  THE  VANGUARD 

is  to  sacrifice  to  the  tablets,  may  we  do  that  still  ?  "  asked 
he. 

"  Suppose  we  bow  our  heads  right  now,"  said  Willis, 
"  and  ask  God  to  have  us  do  what's  right." 

•'  I  wish,"  said  the  Dragon  to  himself,  "  that  master 
wouldn't  do  this  kind  of  prayin',  askin'  the  God  to  bless 
all  kinds  of  people.  If  he  would  only  set  up  like  an 
official  and  keep  some  style  going !  "  Such  were  the 
Dragon's  mutterings,  as  he  bustled  about  Willis'  evening 
meal  over  a  charcoal  fire.  He  could  boil  potatoes,  pre- 
pare rice  cake  mixed  with  meat,  and  make  biscuit ;  but 
the  Dragon's  course  in  cooking  had  been  continued 
largely  under  his  own  inspiration,  so  that  the  dishes  he 
evolved  from  his  towsled  consciousness  were  varied  and 
wonderful.  Willis  took  what  came  without  question, 
often  in  an  absent-minded  way,  his  thoughts  being 
strangely  elsewhere.  The  low  mud  room  had  grown  fa- 
miliar to  him,  with  the  embroidered  mat  stretched  along 
one  end  of  the  heated  floor.  His  dining  table,  round  in 
shape,  was  one  foot  high  and  two  in  diameter,  provided 
with  spoon  and  chopsticks.  The  boy  Dragon,  his  chief 
piece  of  furniture,  was  almost  as  broad  as  long,  dressed 
in  white  clothes,  padded  thickly.  His  trousers  were  enor- 
mous, wide  at  the  waist,  baggy  all  the  way  down  and  tied 
at  the  ankles.  The  Dragon  was  clean,  for  a  Korean  boy, 
he  was  proud  also,  and  swore  by  his  master. 

Kim  had  gone  home.  That  night  he  called  his  wife 
and  said,  "  Look  here,  wife,  I've  been  to  see  the  foreigner 
to-day,  and  it  is  just  as  the  physician  told  me,  I  believe 
his  religion  is  true." 

The  little  woman  with  doll  face  and  glossy  hair  gave  a 
startled  look,  and  said,  "  You  believe  it  ?  You  are  unset- 
tled in  your  mind  by  looking  into  such  things.  Keep 


KIM'S    VICTORY  47 

away  from  it  I  beg  you.  A  religion  that  is  reviled  by 
every  one  how  can  it  be  true  ?  " 

"  As  sure  as  F  live,"  said  Kim  slowly  and  thoughtfully, 
"  it  is  true." 

"  And  give  up  your  ancestors,"  said  she,  "  and  the  gods 
who  care  for  us  ?  It  means  our  destruction.  Why  did 
you  go  there  ?  Ula !  "  and  she  began  to  cry.  "  I-go ! " 

It  was  a  dreary  night  at  Kim's.  He  tried  to  pray,  but 
he  did  not  know  how,  and  there  were  no  words.  The 
long  hours  wore  by  and  neither  slept. 

In  the  early  morning,  in  a  dreamy  half-unconscious 
way,  she  prepared  his  breakfast  which  he  ate  off  his  little 
round  table  in  his  room,  she  by  herself  out  in  the  kitchen. 

After  breakfast,  without  any  word  to  her  husband,  she 
put  on  a  clean  white  skirt  and  head  cloak,  took  twenty 
yang  [eighty  cents],  and  left  the  house.  Let  us  follow 
her  out  of  the  city  and  away  up  the  valley  through  a 
narrow  gorge,  in  and  out  among  the  hills,  her  feet  toil- 
ing up  the  pathway,  till  she  comes  to  a  tiled  house  that 
rests  in  a  secluded  nook  among  the  rocks  and  rollers  of 
the  mountainside.  This  is  a  temple  of  the  Buddha.  She 
is  a  Confucianist,  but  all  Confucianists  in  Korea  resort  to 
the  help  of  the  Indian  god  in  times  of  distress  and  dan- 
ger The  priests  and  the  old  woman  of  the  temple  met 
her  at  the  gate. 

Said  she,  "  I  have  come  to  pray  to  the  Buddha,  make 
ready  eighty  cents  worth." 

At  once  there  was  scurrying  about  the  kitchen.  Bowls 
of  rice  were  made  ready,  then  brought  in  and  put  on  the 
table  before  the  gilded  god.  Candles,  too,  were  lighted, 
and  the  officiating  priest  put  on  his  robes  of  scarlet  and 
purple. 

"  What  is  your  desire  ?  "  asked  he. 


48  THE  VANGUARD 

"  To  save  my  husband  from  the  heresy,  that  is  taught 
by  the  foreigner  in  the  city." 

"  So  ! "  said  the  priest. 

The  prayers  were  rattled  off  with  the  rapidity  of  an 
electric  wheel,  all  in  Sanscrit,  so  that  the  reader  of  this 
chapter  will  understand  the  meaning  quite  as  well  as  the 
priest  did,  or  Mrs.  Kim.  It  was  interspersed,  as  you  notice 
in  brackets,  with  beating  of  drums,  bells,  gongs,  cymbals, 
all  intended  to  keep  the  Buddha  awake,  the  sleepy  old 
god  whose  ears  are  of  brass.  The  noises  are  terrific. 
"  Ah-h-h  !  "  said  the  priest,  while  Mrs.  Kim  bowed  her 
head  before  the  idol,  (Koang-Koang)  "  soo-sooree-saba, 
soo-sooree-saba"  (boom-boom),  om-tooree-cheema,  om- 
tooree-cheema  (jang-jang,  jang-jang)  soo-sooree-saba  (pink- 
pink,  pink-pink)  sa-manee-manta,  sa-manee-manta  (bang- 
bang,  bang-bang)  soo-sooree-saba,  soo-sooree-saba  (Koang- 
Koang)  om-manee-panme-hum,  om-manee-panme-hum 
(jang,  boom,  koang-koang,  pink,  bang-bang)  for  three- 
quarters  of  an  hour,  and  so  she  purchased  eighty  cents 
worth  of  Buddhistic  prayer  in  behalf  of  her  husband,  who 
had  turned  his  back  upon  the  gods. 

Kim,  meanwhile,  had  gone  in  despair  to  Willis.  How 
about  his  wife  ?  "  Have  no  anxiety,"  said  Willis. 
"  Search  your  book  with  prayer  in  your  heart  to  God, 
and  then  act  just  as  you  see  it  tells  you.  Be  kind,  and 
tender,  and  patient,  and  she'll  come." 

They  prayed  again  for  the  wife,  who  was  busy  praying 
for  them,  and  Kim  took  courage  and  went  home. 

In  the  evening  he  said,  "  wife,  come  and  sit  by  me  and 
listen  to  this."  She  refused,  so  he  read  from  Matthew, 
out  loud  enough  for  her  to  hear : 

"  The  one  who  has  no  selfish  plans  in  mind,  is  blessed, 
hers  is  the  kingdom  of  heaven. 


KIM'S   VICTORY  49 

"  She  who  weeps  sore  is  blessed,  she  will  be  comforted. 

"  The  kind  and  tender  one  is  blessed,  his  is  the  land. 

"  Those  who  are  hungry  and  thirsty  to  do  right  are 
blessed  and  shall  be  satisfied. 

"  The  merciful  are  blessed  and  will  find  mercy. 

"  The  clean-hearted  ones  are  blessed,  and  by  and  by 
will  see  God." 

Kim's  wife  was  struck  by  these  words,  read  from  the 
Yaysoo  (Jesus)  book.  They  sank  into  her  heart  with  a 
note  that  rang  different  from  soo-sooree-saba.  Her 
womanly  curiosity  was  aroused.  Surely  there  was  no 
evil  omen  attending  such  words  as  these.  She  would  sit 
down  by  his  side  and  listen. 

"  Ask  and  He'll  give  you,"  said  the  Book.  "  Knock 
and  He'll  open  to  you.  If  you,  who  are  sinners,  know 
how  to  give  good  things  to  your  little  ones,  will  not  your 
Father,  who  lives  in  heaven,  give  better  things  still  to 
those  who  ask  Him  ?  But  the  gate  to  heaven  is  small, 
and  the  way  is  narrow,  and  not  many  find  it." 

Just  like  the  road  to  the  temple,  thought  she. 

Kim  read  on,  "  The  man  or  woman  who  listens  to 
My  voice  and  obeys  its  sound,  is  like  the  wise  one,  who 
built  his  house  on  a  rock.  The  rainy  season  came,  the 
river  water,  and  the  wind  blew  and  beat,  but  the  house 
stood  firm,  because  it  was  built  upon  a  rock." 

"  Who  says  this  ?  "  asked  Mrs.  Kim. 

"  Jesus,"  was  the  answer,  "  and  he  is  Hananim,  God." 

"  I'm  so  afraid,"  said  she, "  but  can  we  find  more  about 
Him  ?  "  And  so  they  sat,  these  two,  who  had  never 
before  been  equal,  or  had  interests  in  common,  with  their 
heads  bowed  over  the  Book,  night  after  night 

Who  can  touch  off  the  mystery  of  that  transformation, 
world-wide  in  its  wonder,  the  never-ending  miracle  ?  If 


50  THE  VANGUARD 

you,  my  reader,  could  be  transferred  from  America  or 
England,  to  the  little  home  under  the  thatch,  where  Kim 
and  his  wife,  bending  over  the  Book,  learned  to  know 
and  love  each  other,  you  would  grant  that  Willis'  mission 
on  earth  was  not  in  vain. 

"  So   blinded  was  I,"  said  Mrs.  Kim,  "  that  I  even 
prayed  to  the  idol  Buddha." 


VII 

KO  IN  PRISON 

WHY  was  Ko  in  prison,  viewing  the  torture  with 
the  cold  sweat  gathering  on  his  back?  In 
Korea  the  ancestral  grave  is  everything,  it 
constitutes  a  man's  capital,  his  health,  his  sons  and  daugh- 
ters, his  eternal  welfare.  Graves  are  mightier  here  than 
creeds  are  at  home,  mightier  than  the  sword.  Touch 
them  not,  unless  you  wish  to  rouse  the  furies,  or  bite  the 
dust  on  the  execution  ground. 

But  Ko  had  not  been  tampering  with  graves,  he  had 
been  visiting  Yu's  house,  trying  to  get  Yu's  wife  to  elope 
with  him,  she  being  half  inclined  to  yield,  only  fear  held 
her.  Ko  had  watched  his  chance  and  called  to  urge  his 
proposals.  Yu  was  away  ;  no  one  knew  where,  and  the 
night  was  dark.  Suddenly  a  footfall  sounded  on  the 
creaking  snow,  and  Ko  made  a  dash  for  the  kitchen  to 
hide,  while  the  door  opened  and  in  came  Yu  breathless, 
unaware  of  the  thief  who  would  steal  his  wife.  Says  he, 
"  On  with  your  clothes  at  once  and  come." 

"  Why,  what  is  the  matter  ?  "  asked  Mrs.  Yu. 

"  Matter  enough,  not  my  fault  though  !  On  with  your 
coat.  I  went  with  Chung  and  Ku  who  asked  me  to  help 
them  steal  a  grave  site  on  Tablet  Hill,  and  just  as  we  got 
the  body  up  the  owners  got  after  us.  I  struck  one  fellow 
on  the  back  with  the  pick-axe  and  he  is  dead.  Get 
yourself  wrapped  up  now  quick  as  the  runners  are  after 


52  THE   VANGUARD 

Ko,  listening,  heard  all  that  passed,  his  teeth  chattering 
with  guilty  fear. 

"  On  with  your  cloak,"  shouted  Yu,  seeing  his  wife 
delay. 

"  But  I  cannot,  so  dark  and  cold  ;  where  will  we  go  ?  " 
and  she  began  to  cry. 

"  You  can't  ?  "  says  Yu,  drawing  his  knife.  "  One  mur- 
der more  won't  count.  On  with  your  cloak  or  I'll  drive 
this  into  you." 

His  words  meant  death.  She  saw  it,  and  hastily  don- 
ning her  coat,  stepped  out  into  the  night. 

Ko  followed,  and  when  they  were  passing  the  market 
square  he  shouted,  as  only  a  Korean  can  shout, "  Where's 
the  murderer  going  ?  Catch  him  !  " 

Yu  dropped  his  wife,  with  other  impedimenta,  and 
fled.  Ko  carried  off  his  prize  in  triumph  ;  the  gods  had 
favored  them,  cleared  away  their  barriers,  and  made  them 
happy. 

But  there  is  an  inexorable  law  working  underneath  this 
sleepy  land  of  Korea,  which  is,  "  Whatsoever  a  man 
soweth,  that  shall  he  also  reap." 

Ko's  house  was  founded  on  grave  desecration  and 
murder,  and  its  fruits  could  never  be  sweet ;  soon  it  fell, 
and  great  was  the  fall  thereof.  Other  tempters  came  by 
to  steal  this  wife  of  his,  and  Ko  discovered  it.  There 
was  a  settlement  such  as  one  often  hears  on  dark  nights 
in  the  Hermit  Land,  the  screams  of  a  woman,  the  heavy 
thud,  thud,  thud  of  the  husband's  horse-kick  dealing  out 
vengeance,  cruel  as  death,  and  only  as  the  East  is  cruel. 

"  You'd  try  that  game  with  me,  would  you  ?  "  inter- 
spersed with  blow  on  blow. 

"  Kill  me,  oh,  kill  me,"  she  screamed. 

The  chief  of  the  Yamen  hears  the  row,  but  pays  no 


KO   IN   PRISON  53 

attention.  "  Some  woman  getting  her  deserts."  No 
one  interferes  and  the  process  is  carried  through.  When 
kicked  insensible,  Ko  takes  coarse  scissors  and  cuts  off 
her  hair,  branding  her  with  disgrace  and  ruin.  She 
finally  becomes  a  Yamen  slave  and  he  is  free. 

He  had  tried  a  hand  at  all  kinds  of  work,  and  at  last 
fell  to  peddling  persimmons,  borrowing  enough  money 
to  start  him  on  his  way.  He  was  in  the  town  of  Kang- 
wha,  where,  near  the  East  Gate,  he  came  on  a  group  of 
men  gambling.  The  cash  passed  from  hand  to  hand, 
and  lively  was  the  interest.  Ko  watched,  and  his  mouth 
watered  to  take  part  in  the  game. 

"  Let  me  have  a  hand,"  said  he,  all  his  persimmon 
money  requisitioned  for  the  deal. 

One  hour  went  by,  an  hour  of  hope  and  despair,  one 
moment  up  in  the  third  heaven,  the  next  perspiring  from 
agony.  Little  by  little  the  cash  bits  took  their  departure, 
and  Ko  was  left  penniless. 

"  Lend  me  a  start,"  he  said  appealingly  to  the  winner ; 
"just  enough  to  set  me  on  my  feet  with  persimmons." 

"  Lend  you  ?  "  said  the  winner  in  a  high-pitched  key. 
"  By  all  the  gods  of  heaven  and  earth,  if  you  want  money 
come  and  win  it,  you  craven-livered  offspring." 

Both  men  were  up  and  glaring  at  each  other. 

"  If  you  don't  want  to  lend  the  money  say  so,"  said 
Ko,  "  but  stop  your  yok  "  (insult). 

This  drove  the  winner  into  Oriental  frenzy. 

"  I  curse  you,  your  mother,  and      .     .     ." 

Before  the  sentence  was  finished,  Ko  had  made  a 
stroke  in  which  North  Koreans  excel.  Dropping  his 
head  like  a  butting-ram,  he  cleared  the  earth  and  went 
smash  into  the  visage  of  the  winner,  splitting  his  sen- 
sibilities, and  felling  him  like  a  slaughtered  beef.  From 


54  THE   VANGUARD 

the  flattened  nose  the.re  came  forth  blood,  and  arms  and 
legs  lay  prone. 

"  Hello  !  "  said  the  onlookers, "  this  is  a  Ping-yang-ite ; 
see  him  butt !  "  and  they  circled  around  Ko  to  catch  him 
frontwise,  and  on  the  flank.  Ko's  knife  was  out. 

"  Any  one  who  wants  to  taste  of  this  blade,  come  on," 
said  he. 

Gradually  he  backed  away  and  made  his  escape ;  but 
the  fever  of  the  game  was  on  him  and  play  he  must. 

His  sacrificial  season  came  round,  and  he  repaired  to 
the  town  of  Ne-chung,  where  he  was  to  make  his  offer- 
ing. All  the  friends  and  relatives,  as  is  the  custom  in  the 
East,  came,  some  of  them  a  hundred  miles  and  more  to 
this  Irish  wake.  There  was  food  and  drink  in  abundance. 
Ko  had  borrowed  every  cash  piece  that  went  for  the 
spread,  and  all  was  ready,  as  Confucian  tenets  require. 
He  had  on  heavy  sackcloth  and  the  ropes  tied  round  his 
waist  and  head  were  most  filial  like,  but  the  time  of  offer- 
ing was  cock-crow  of  the  morning,  and  there  was  an  hour 
or  two  to  spare.  There  was  some  borrowed  cash  left 
over,  and  so  out  came  a  pack  of  cards,  and  a  group 
squatted  in  the  corner  gambling.  Again  Ko's  heap  of 
pieces  went  one  by  one.  His  relations  remonstrated. 

"  To  gamble  like  this  on  sacrificial  night,  'tis  awful ; 
the  ancestral  gods  will  smite  you." 

"  Aw !  shut  up,"  said  Ko,  and  went  at  it  fiercer  and 
more  vehemently  than  ever.  Still  the  cash  faded  away 
and  perspiration  gathered  in  agonizing  drops. 

Cock-crow  called  the  worshippers  to  this  most  solemn 
of  all  Korea's  exercises. 

"  Here,"  said  Ko,  "  take  the  rope  and  these  rags," 
flinging  off  his  sackcloth,  "anybody  that  likes,  I'm  going 
to  finish  this  game." 


KO   IN   PRISON  55 

The  meeting  broke  up  in  horror,  people  were  speech- 
less at  this  son  of  perdition,  who  played  games  while  his 
Father's  spirit  waited  to  be  propitiated.  The  magistrate 
heard  of  it,  and  Ko  was  locked  up  in  jail,  whence  he 
looked  out  on  the  fate  of  the  Tong-haks. 


VIII 
PLUM  AND  OTHER  WESTERNERS 

IT  was  a  red  letter  day  in  the  history  of  the  far  North, 
when  Plum  the  Westerner  arrived.  He  was  short,  and 
round,  with  a  baldish  head,  and  a  sociable  face.  He 
could  tell  a  whole  story  simply  by  playing  mysterious 
waves  of  light  and  shadow  over  his  countenance.  The 
street  urchins  would  watch  and  hum  about  him  when 
they  beheld  the  sweetness  of  his  expression,  or  they 
would  dodge  round  corners  and  peer  at  him  over  mud 
walls,  when  he  changed  into  the  likeness  of  an  ogre. 
They  studied  his  face  and  his  moods.  It  was  marvellous 
to  them  how  his  mouth  and  ears  seemed  to  change  places, 
the  tufts  too  on  each  side  of  his  head  would  go  up  and 
down.  He  was  good  in  heart,  true  and  trustworthy,  and 
desired  the  welfare  of  the  people  quite  as  much  as  Willis 
did,  but  he  had  a  bent  for  the  ridiculous  that  would  not 
down,  and  that  often  gave  him  pain.  Sometimes  his 
face  betokened  deep  repentance  and  sorrow.  He  evi- 
dently mourned  for  having  made  all  the  people  laugh, 
but  ere  another  day  had  passed,  there  were  sure  to  be 
outbursts  of  hilarity  in  the  neighborhood  of  Plum. 

Willis  seemed  unconscious  of  it.  When  his  attention 
was  specially  called,  he  did  see  and  smile ;  but  in  most 
cases  he  lived  in  a  quiet  world,  seemingly  to  himself. 

A  few  nights  after  the  arrival  of  Plum,  a  street  fight 
took  place  just  in  front  of  Willis'  hut     As  usual  with 
Koreans,  it  was  a  fearful  noisy  affair,  mixed  with  awful 
56 


PLUM  AND  OTHER  WESTERNERS    57 

oaths  and  threatenings.  Insults  were  added,  angels 
appealed  to,  streams  of  invective  poured  forth,  eyes 
aglare,  veins  distended,  and  the  whole  being  ready  to 
burst,  both  participants  keyed  up  to  the  same  tone  and 
throwing  off  about  a  million  vibrations  to  the  second 

Willis  had  quietly  taken  hold  of  Ko  when  he  fought 
and  walked  him  off,  but  Plum's  methods  were  not  of  that 
kind.  He  watched  this  fight  for  a  little,  and  as  the  fury 
grew  great  he  could  hold  himself  in  no  longer.  Out  he 
flew  between  them,  up  into  the  air  he  bounced,  his  tufts 
standing  on  end.  Round  he  went  whirling,  his  face  look- 
ing like  all  the  furies  and  his  arms  and  legs  flying. 

The  crowd  was  spellbound.  In  the  rounds  of  its 
mortal  existence  no  such  custom  had  ever  been  known 
before.  The  combatants,  too,  were  paralyzed.  They 
had  no  idea  where  they  left  off  the  fight,  nor  any  notion 
about  where  to  begin  again,  so  they  walked  meekly 
away  in  different  directions,  and  left  Plum  the  centre  of 
attraction. 

"  Don't  fight,"  screamed  Plum,  "  it's  a  nasty  custom, 
see  how  I  look;"  and  he  went  through  the  various 
tableaux  of  a  Korean  fisticuff  to  perfection,  while  all  the 
crowd  laughed  wildly. 

There  were  many  informal  conferences  held  regarding 
these  strangers.  Groups  in  the  inns  discussed  them, 
their  manners,  appearance,  behavior,  and  moral  qualities. 
In  one  of  the  gathering  places  of  Ping-yang  on  a  certain 
evening  there  were  assembled  many  elderly  Koreans, 
with  long  pipes,  sleek  topknots  and  voluminous  trousers. 
They  were  exceedingly  respectable  looking,  and  might 
have  given  dignity  to  a  Hague  conference.  The  subject 
up  for  discussion  was  Westerners,  the  men  from  beyond 
the  seas,  Yang-in.  They  were  very  uncouth  in  their  bear- 


58  THE  VANGUARD 

ing,  witness  the  example  of  the  man  Plum,  whose  be- 
havior was  marvellous  to  behold.  He  had  been  seen 
riding  a  "  go-of-itself  "  [bicycle]  with  one  leg  at  the  hori- 
zontal, and  the  other  down  on  the  cho-wha  [the  moving 
principle].  He  could  talk  Korean  amusingly,  and  was 
kindly  disposed  for  he  had  helped  a  poor  old  couple 
through  the  winter,  and  had  spent  much  money  in  alms. 
He  advocated  the  same  doctrine  as  Willis  did,  but  had 
interspersed  it  with  many  capers.  He  was  a  Koang-ki- 
chan-un  man  [he  would  do].  But  there  was  Puffsnauber 
now  who  lived  in  the  port.  He  was  a  brute,  he  had 
horse-whipped  his  servant,  simply  because  he  had  eaten 
some  of  the  leavings  from  his  table — most  shameful. 
He  seemed  to  be  a  vulgar  man,  who  had  no  proper  man- 
ners. He  drank  much  sool  [spirit],  and  swore  bad  oaths. 
He  was  a  stench  in  the  nostrils  of  a  decent  folk  like 
Koreans,  "  but  you  can't  expect  these  benighted  bar- 
barians to  be  civilized."  The  horse-whipped  boy  re- 
ported far  and  wide  the  unspeakable  doings  in  the  home 
of  Puffsnauber. 

Then  there  was  another  man  called  Wintershine,  who 
went  about  with  eight  dogs,  only  six  now ;  some  spotted, 
some  ringstraked,  some  all  ears,  with  long  bodies  and 
dislocated  legs.  What  about  him,  he  had  been  having 
diplomatic  correspondence  regarding  his  dogs,  had  he 
not  ?  "  Yes,"  said  one  of  the  party,  "  I  know  all  about 
it,  listen  to  me." 

"  It  was  in  the  last  turtle  year  that  Wintershine  lost  his 
long  dogs.  The  things  had  dislocated  legs  to  start  with, 
all  four  of  them.  You  know  old  Koo  the  housebroker 
had  had  rats  in  his  legs  during  the  summer  and  had  tried 
ten  thousand  remedies — ducks'  tongues,  centipede  pow- 
ders, extract  of  snake  skin,  but  in  vain.  Dr.  Quik  of  Ping- 


PLUM  AND  OTHER  WESTERNERS    59 

yang,  you  know  him,  he  stands  high  in  his  profession,  he 
said  brown  dog  would  do  it,  chase  all  the  rats ;  brown 
dog  low-set  and  long,  so  that  it  could  enter  well  into  the 
legs,  two  would  be  necessary,  one  for  each  leg. 

Koo  the  housebroker  must  live  and  attain  to  rest  as  to 
his  legs.  Search  was  made  far  and  wide  and  at  last  Win- 
tershine's  two  dachshunds  were  discovered  to  just  fit  the 
case.  Boys  and  men  tracked  them  with  ropes  and  lassos, 
for  old  Koo  had  said,  "  Here  is  money,  haste  ye,  be 
quick." 

One  day  as  Wintershine  was  returning  from  a  walk, 
all  the  dogs  tired,  especially  the  dachshunds,  who  waddled 
along  behind  with  dragging  ears  and  drooped  sabre  tails, 
he  passed  the  corner  of  a  wood  and  made  his  way  home. 
At  the  end  of  the  journey  he  counted  the  dogs,  six — no 
more.  The  terriers,  the  black  satin  dog,  the  pointers, 
the  spaniel,  all  were  here  but  Bill  and  Mary  the  thorough- 
bred dachshunds,  they  were  missing. 

At  once  search  was  made,  one  man  had  seen  the  dogs, 
their  faces  towards  Seoul,  pass  over  a  hill,  two  miles  to 
the  south ;  another  had  seen  them  lying  under  a  tree 
resting,  just  there  to  the  left  Wintershine  was  wild, 
Lord  Pole-evil  had  given  him  these  dogs,  and  if  it  went 
to  the  Chancellor  of  the  Exchequer  he  would  have  the 
thing  settled.  He  offered  five  thousand  cash  reward,  for 
any  authentic  information  regarding  the  brown  dogs. 

At  night  a  tap  came  at  the  door  and  in  crawled  a  man 
with  lanky  face  and  loose  whiskers.  He  looked  to  see 
that  no  one  was  by,  and  then  told  Wintershine  in  broken 
English, 

"  Old  Koo,  housebroker,  you  know,  have  long  time 
rats  inside  his  legs,  no  can  get  medicine.  Doctor  say 
must  eat  brown  dog,  chase  rats,  you  no  see,  two  piece 


60  THE   VANGUARD 

dog,  one  piece  each  leg.  Master  brown  dog  all  same 
cooked.  Just  now  old  Koo  drinkee  much  dog  soup,  rats 
all  go  away,  plenty  better." 

Wintershine  was  a  man  of  action.  It  was  not  twelve 
hours  till  he  had  Koo  down  on  his  face  in  the  Yamen, 
strapped  to  a  flogging-board,  his  aforesaid  legs  bare,  and 
the  bamboo  being  applied  with  a  keenness  that  made 
the  air  tingle.  Every  morning  for  fifteen  days  Winter- 
shine  went  down  to  see  the  application.  The  rats  left  at 
once,  but  certain  crawling,  stinging  sensations  overspread 
the  outside  of  Koo's  legs  that  took  many  days  to  heal. 

This  whole  case  was  discussed  and  as  for  these  people 
they  could  see  no  justice  in  it.  What  was  the  canine  as 
compared  with  the  human  ?  Especially  those  long  ugly 
dogs  with  dislocated  legs ;  such  a  fuss  !  And  to  have 
Koo  stripped  and  paddled,  the  wretched  barbarian  ! 
Korea  would  never  lift  up  its  head  till  it  got  rid  of  the 
whole  set  of  them. 

Then  Willis  came  up  for  review.  He  hadn't  so  many 
flaws,  he  was  quiet,  dignified,  kind,  considerate,  but  he 
taught  the  wickedness  of  god  (Ch'un-ju-ak}.  If  all  were 
as  he  there  might  be  fraternity  and  good  feeling,  he,  of 
all  the  foreigners,  was  most  like  a  Korean,  the  highest 
compliment  they  could  pay. 

The  "  Wickedness  of  God  "  referred  to  was  a  house- 
hold phrase  in  the  Hermit  Kingdom.  Roman  Catholics, 
years  before,  in  disguise  as  mourners,  had  crept  into 
Korea  and  gone  about  calling  their  teaching  Ch'un-ju-hak 
(The  Learning  of  God.)  They  had  been  arrested  as  po- 
litical suspects,  and  several  of  them  had  been  beheaded, 
so  that  their  remembrance  was  hateful  to  the  orthodox 
Confucian,  and  a  name  suited  to  their  character  was  de- 
vised for  their  teaching.  Following  a  good  old  English 


PLUM  AND  OTHER  WESTERNERS    61 

custom  they  simply  dropped  the  "  h  "  of  hak,  and  called  it 
Ch'un-ju-ak,  the  wickedness  of  God.  With  the  masses 
that  became  the  name  of  the  Roman  Catholic  religion 
and  continues  to  be  the  name  till  to-day. 

So  this  council  proceeded.  The  consuls  too  were 
spoken  of,  some  were  fair,  some  were  bad.  One  had 
shipped  away  a  load  of  Korean  skulls  recently, — for 
medicine,  the  assembly  said.  Doubtless  they  were  all 
after  Korean  eyes,  brain  flesh  and  skulls,  "than  which 
there  is  nothing  superior  in  the  way  of  medicine." 

What  about  Bruce  ?  he  was  said  to  be  most  skillful. 
They  hoped  some  day  to  see  him  and  judge. 

Callers  came  daily  to  Willis.  Would  he  please  explain 
first  why  Wintershine  beat  Koo  fifteen  times  for  the  sake 
of  those  dogs  ?  Was  that  one  of  the  teachings  of  the 
doctrine?  Did  our  people  take  anybody  for  wife  and 
throw  them  away  as  they  pleased?  Why  did  Plum 
sometimes  stand  on  his  hands  instead  of  his  feet  ?  Did 
he  not  think  it  wrong  to  carry  a  gun  and  shoot  pheas- 
ants, and  ducks  and  geese  ?  Did  these  things  not  prove 
that  this  religion  was  no  good  ? 

With  a  patience  that  never  wore  thin  or  changed  color, 
Willis  answered,  explained,  and  waited.  Perhaps  the 
hardest  point  to  make  clear  was  that  an  altogether  pure 
gospel  could  proceed  from  a  Western  world  that  was  any- 
thing but  pure.  A  sample  of  that  Western  world  was 
Puffsnauber,  who  was  already  a  permanent  quantity  in 
the  open  port.  He  was  florid  of  countenance,  incoherent 
of  speech,  and  massive  in  his  manner.  Tailors  lacked 
capacity  to  fit  him  with  ease,  for  his  buttons,  straps,  and 
suspenders  creaked  and  pulled  from  magnitude  of  pres- 
sure. He  had  spent  his  days  among  ships  and  so  had 
gradually  acquired  the  cut  of  a  blue-painted  cargo  boat, 


62  THE  VANGUARD 

built  for  tonnage  and  capacity.  His  gait  resembled  its 
movings,  and  the  repose  with  which  he  settled  himself  in 
his  armchair  constituted  the  dropping  of  the  anchor. 

He  had  built  him  a  bungalow  in  a  sheltered  nook  be- 
tween the  hills,  with  an  outlook  that  commanded  the  har- 
bor, fenced  it  round,  planted  a  hedge,  and  digged  a  wine- 
cellar. 

His  bungalow  contained  four  rooms  and  a  kitchen,  and 
he  was  but  a  single  man. 

"  Boy,"  said  he  to  his  head-servant, "  you  go,  by  and  by, 
catch  me  one  piece  Yapanee  vife." 

"  Vife !     Vife !     My  no  savez,"  answered  the  boy. 

"  You  idiot,  you  no  savez  ?  Voman,  missus,  frau,  all 
the  same,  von  piece  you  pring  me,  geep  mine  house, 
makee  chow-chow,  be  my  vife." 

The  boy,  thus  directed,  left  the  room,  the  unfathoma- 
ble expression  of  the  Far  East  written  over  his  features. 

Later  on  the  same  Puffsnauber  sat  inhaling  Manila  leaf 
from  a  deep-bowled  German  pipe.  Yes,  life  was  lonely 
for  him,  here  was  a  whole  bungalow  and  all  to  him- 
self. 

Scuff,  scuff,  scuff,  sounded  faintly  in  the  distance.  He 
was  to  have  callers,  for  the  glimmer  of  a  red  paper  lan- 
tern appeared  in  the  night,  and  a  bevy  of  Japanese  women 
came  waddling  along  on  wooden  shoes.  They  knocked 
at  Puffsnauber's  garden  gate,  which  roused  the  dog,  and 
caused  an  uproar,  ending  at  last  in  the  entrance  of  the 
women,  each  bowing  low  and  saying,  "  Kom-ban-wa " 
(good-evening). 

Mr.  Puffsnauber  would  have  ventured  the  heaviest  sea 
in  Eastern  waters  without  a  fear  possessing  him,  but  to 
be  brought  face  to  face  with  polite  ladies  in  the  darkness 
of  the  night,  was  more  than  his  highly-tuned  system 


PLUM  AND  OTHER  WESTERNERS    63 

could  withstand.  He  blushed  deeply  and  asked  why 
they  were  come. 

The  eldest  of  the  party  bowed  three  times  on  hands 
and  knees,  and  began,  "  It  has  been  said  in  our  degraded 
hearing,  that  the  great  man  required  for  the  carrying  on 
of  his  honorable  house,  for  the  preparation  of  his  most 
excellent  fare,  and  for  the  overseeing  of  what  pertaineth 
to  his  distinguished  person,  the  services  of  a  female,  born 
of  the  dust,  such  as  we.  The  humble  speaker  brings 
herewith  three  specimens  of  her  ignominious  offspring, 
any  one  of  which  she  will  let  go  as  wife,  servant,  or 
slave,  for  ten  dollars  a  month,  and  may  the  blessing  of 
the  immortal  gods  come  down  on  the  great  Mr.  Puff- 
snauber." 

Puffsnauber  grinned,  and  blushed  and  called  his  serv- 
ant. "  Boy,  you  make  von  pargain  mit  dis  voman.  Vhat 
you  tink  is  the  best  vife  you  catch  for  me.  I  will  go  and 
see  somedings  in  the  custom-house." 

It  was  not  long  till  the  touch  of  a  female  hand  showed 
itself  in  the  expression  of  Puffsnauber's  home.  One  room 
of  the  four  had  been  fitted  out  in  Japanese  style,  thick 
oblong  mats  lining  the  floor,  with  smaller  ones  here  and 
there  to  sit  on.  A  fire-box  was  in  the  middle,  with  the 
requisites  on  it  for  a  Japanese  tea.  Over  the  lighted 
charcoal  bent  the  dumpy  figure  of  the  new  Mrs.  Puff- 
snauber. She  was  dressed  in  silk  according  to  the  bundled 
fashion  of  the  Far  East,  tied  and  wrapped  in  red,  and 
drab,  and  yellow.  Her  hair,  glossy  and  black,  stood  out 
in  oiled  loops  and  twists,  while  an  armory  of  spears  and 
pins  ornamented  it.  Her  face  bore  something  of  refine- 
ment, though  broad  for  its  length,  and  rather  overmuch 
given  to  cheekbones.  The  almond  eyes  turned  modestly 
up,  slightly  tilted  at  the  corners.  They  wore  an  expres- 


64  THE   VANGUARD 

sion  of  meekness  and  smiling  servility.  Her  cheeks 
were  red,  though  of  a  different  hue  from  those  of  Mr. 
Puffsnauber. 

And  now  the  family  circle  was  complete,  and  the  mas- 
ter, who  had  got  himself  over  his  shock,  said  in  the  deep- 
est tones  of  the  Rhineland,  "  If  you  vas  a  goot  voman,  I 
vill  geep  you  alvays ;  if  you  vas  not,  I  vill  say  all  at 
vonce  git  out." 

:  Hai !  "  replied  Mrs.  Puffsnauber,  bowing. 

"  You  vill  light  mine  pipe,  and  pring  mine  peer." 

"  Hai ! " 

"  Plack  mine  poots." 

«  Hai ! " 

"  Und  come  vhen  you  vas  called.  " 

"  Ha-i-i-i ! " 

Canary  birds  sang  in  cages  before  Puffsnauber's  home. 
Famous  plants  and  flowers  from  Japan  took  root  in  his 
garden,  bloomed  and  grew.  Shade  trees  spread  their 
leaves  over  the  bungalow  at  the  ministrations  of  the  faith- 
ful Mrs.  Puffsnauber.  The  master  himself  increased  in 
size  and  importance,  sleek  of  body  and  ferocious  of  dis- 
position. He  would  recline  under  his  shade  trees  and 
among  his  flowers  smoking  in  massive  splendor,  or  would 
rear  up  suddenly  and  say,  "  Vhy  you  not  pring  me  von 
fan  ?  Efery  time  I'm  so  hot  you  no  pring  me.  Yapanee 
fool ! " 

Scuff,  scuff,  scuff,  came  the  wooden  shoes  and  the  fan, 
and  the  submissive  wife  would  pass  it  with  both  hands, 
respectfully,  sometimes  tearfully,  saying,  "  Hai !  " 

This  was  but  one  case  of  many ;  already  there  existed 
the  wild  world  of  the  open  ports,  not  more  wicked  than 
great  cities  at  home,  but  more  open  in  its  wickedness  and 
influence  on  the  morally  frail  peoples  of  the  East.  All 


PLUM  AND  OTHER  WESTERNERS    65 

nationalities  come  shovelled  in  together,  each  ready  to 
prove  to  the  other  how  independent  he  can  be  of  every 
restraint.  No  wonder  fond  mothers  who  dwell  at  home, 
are  anxious  about  the  darling  boy  who  drifts  away  to  the 
open  ports  around  the  one  hundred  and  twentieth 
meridian. 

The  open  port  tells  forth  its  gospel  of  lawlessness,  all 
over  the  nation  goes  its  breath,  teaching  every  man  to  do 
what  is  right  in  his  own  eyes,  it  being  understood  that 
what  pleases  him  is  right  These  are  some  of  the  mighty 
members  in  opposition  to  the  lifting  up  of  a  fallen  race. 
It  takes  many  a  Willis  to  counteract  one  open  port. 

Willis  moved  from  place  to  place,  teaching  as  opportu- 
nity offered,  amid  the  jangling  of  conditions  all  about 
him.  Once  as  he  passed  along  the  street  into  the  custom- 
house, he  was  accosted  by  a  tall,  broad-shouldered  British 
officer,  captain  of  a  man-of-war.  After  greeting,  the 
captain  said,  "  By  the  way,  can  you  tell  me  if  any  of  those 
Russian  devils  are  about  here  ?  " 

When  he  was  satisfied  on  this  point,  he  continued, 
"  What  are  you  doing  in  this  outlandish  corner  of  the 
world,  may  I  ask?" 

« I  am  a  missionary,"  said  Willis,  «  and  am  trying  to  do 
what  I  can  to  help  this  people." 

"  You  are  an  American  and  a  missionary,"  said  the 
captain.  "  Pardon  me,  I  like  Americans,  but  I  have  no 
use  at  all  for  this  missionary  business.  It  makes  the 
natives  far  worse  than  they  were  to  begin  with.  I 
wouldn't  have  one  of  those  converts  aboard  my  ship." 

Willis  bowed  and  said, «  Very  well,  captain,  you  are  at 
liberty  to  do  as  you  please  about  your  ship.  You  know 
more  about  it,  I  imagine,  than  you  do  about  missionary 
converts." 


66  THE  VANGUARD 

"  All  right,"  said  the  captain,  "  you  may  have  them, 
you  may  have  them,"  and  walked  off. 

Captain  Burge  Watson,  in  one  rough  broadside,  had 
done  what  he  could  to  discourage  Willis. 

Three  days  later,  the  Dragon  came  in  with  large  eyes  to 
say  that  a  very  tall  man  and  broad,  high  in  rank,  with 
gold  clasps  and  buttons,  was  waiting  at  the  door. 

When  Willis  looked  out  he  saw  Captain  Watson  with 
his  genial  English  face. 

"  Look  here,"  said  the  captain,  "  I've  felt  bad  ever 
since  I  met  you  the  other  day.  I  really  don't  know 
about  missionary  work  and  you  do.  Will  you  forgive 
me  and  come  and  dine  on  board  my  ship  to-night  ?  I'll 
send  off  the  launch  at  seven  thirty." 

It  was  out  of  the  ordinary  line  of  Willis'  life,  to  be  a 
guest  on  a  man-of-war. 

The  launch  carried  him  out  through  the  white  rollers, 
and  the  captain  was  at  the  gangway  to  meet  him,  with 
the  warmest  kind  of  welcome,  and  the  evening  was  passed 
in  a  world  of  marvellous  order  and  discipline,  so  different 
from  Korea,  touched  off  too  with  steel  mountings,  guns 
and  flashlights. 

The  captain  asked  him  many  earnest  questions  about 
belief,  and  faith,  and  missions,  and  rough  sailor  though 
he  was,  he  let  his  whole  heart  go  out  to  this  tall  earnest 
stranger.  He  saw  underneath  the  exterior  quiet  that 
there  was  a  man  of  sense,  and  a  true  soldier.  His  parting 
was  altogether  different  from  the  parting  in  the  street, "  I 
wish  you  all  success.  If  ever  you  pass  the  port  where  I 
am,  promise  me  to  call." 

The  promise  was  given.  Willis  followed  with  many  a 
kind  thought  the  rough  captain  who  had  at  first  tried  to 
discourage  him,  and  then  when  he  saw  his  wrong  did  his 


PLUM  AND  OTHER  WESTERNERS    67 

best  to  brace  him  up.  He  had  no  chance,  however,  to 
fulfill  the  promise.  Captain  Watson,  rear  admiral,  gover- 
nor of  Malta,  was  suddenly,  in  the  prime  of  life,  called 
to  lay  down  command  and  he  sleeps  near  the  place 
where  Paul  suffered  shipwreck. 

Willis  pinned  up  before  his  mat  the  little  photo  that 
appeared  in  the  Illustrated,  to  remind  him  of  one  who 
had  helped  in  day's  gone  by. 

At  the  other  end  of  the  mat  was  a  card  of  Shoreland. 
To  the  latter  it  was  infinitely  pitiable  to  think  of  Willis,  off 
there  in  exile  in  that  land  of  unwashed  gods.  He  would 
send  him  a  letter  to  cheer  him  up,  and  perhaps  lead  him 
back  to  a  right  way  of  thinking  : 

«  MY  DEAR  WILLIS  : 

"  Just  a  line  to  tell  you  that  I  think  often  of  the 
exile  far  away  out  there,  beyond  everything  in  that  unholy 
land.  I  occasionally  feel  the  shock  too  of  the  Kare,as  she 
struck  the  Gotos  ;  I  look  pale  still  when  I  think  of  it. 
Have  you  built  any  light-houses  yet  along  that  forbidden 
coast  ?  How  about  the  Korean,  can  you  make  anything 
of  him? 

"  I  have  been  reading  a  book  lately  on  the  Far  East 
which  says  that  they  are  hopeless  liars  and  can't  be 
changed,  that  they  prefer  a  rag  to  any  other  kind  of 
God,  and  would  rather  propitiate  devils  than  entertain  a 
friend.  To  think  of  the  millions  of  humanity,  who,  from 
our  point  of  view,  are  hopeless  maniacs,  gives  one  a 
shock  as  to  the  goodness  of  God,  and  the  wisdom  that 
underlies  eternal  doings.  What  can  be  done  for  them  ? 
When  I  think  of  you,  single-handed,  or  almost  so,  against 
such  odds,  I  immediately  give  up  the  whole  effort,  and  say, 
«  Well,  it's  no  use,  let  me  turn  my  thoughts  nearer  home.' 


68  THE  VANGUARD 

"  In  America  matters  are  prospering,  real  estate  has 
gone  up  in  this  neighborhood,  and  I  have  turned  over  a 
margin  of  profits,  with  more  in  view. 

"  I  rode  into  Chicago  the  other  day  in  my  automobile, 
forty  miles  an  hour  on  the  best  of  roads.  While  I  enjoy 
an  automobile,  I  have  lost  no  taste  for  a  good  live  horse. 
I  have  just  completed  arrangements  for  a  span  from  Ken- 
tucky, as  pretty  a  pair  of  drivers  as  were  ever  seen  in  '  the 
dark  and  bloody  ground.'  Their  step  would  make  you 
tingle  with  joy,  after  the  so-called  horses  that  have  kicked 
and  bit  at  you  for  the  last  few  years.  My  coachman  is 
an  Englishman  by  the  name  of  'Arvey,  who  has  lost  all 
his  '  h's,'  and  talks  about '  learnin'  these  folks  'ere  'ow  to 
care  for  'orses,'  but  he  is  an  excellent  hand  in  his  line, 
and  I  hope  with  his  help  to  improve  the  general  grade  of 
horse  in  Illinois. 

"  I  spoke  of  Chicago,  what  a  city  !  It  is  walking  out 
over  the  plains  at  tremendous  stride,  going  heavenward 
too,  materially,  not  much  spiritually  I  fear.  If  ever  you 
do  come  home,  remember  one  bachelor's  cottage  stands 
wide  open  to  rest  you  from  your  labors.  By  the  way,  I 
may  not  be  a  bachelor,  for  a  young  lady  of  the  same 
city  of  Chicago  has  consented  to  come  out  and  share 
my  modest  home.  She  is  beautiful,  and  good,  and  you 
will  think  me  the  luckiest  man  in  all  the  world. 

"  In  three  months  we  are  to  be  married,  more  anon. 
"  Your  ever  sincere  friend, 

"  W.  N.  SHORELAND." 


IX 

HAND  TO  HAND 

WILLIS  was  still  in  Ping-yang,  alone  once 
more,  for  Plum  was  away  in  the  far  north  on 
a  tour ;  most  of  the  helpers  were  absent  also, 
only  Kim  and  the  Dragon  remained. 

Something  was  impending.  For  many  days  no  callers 
had  come,  but  the  two  or  three  Christians  who  had  crept 
in  by  stealth.  Night  settled  down  over  the  old  city. 
Many  times  in  the  solitary  hours  Yap,  Willis'  fox-terrier, 
would  lift  his  ears  and  listen.  He  too  seemed  aware  that 
there  was  a  mystery  hanging  over  them,  and  brought  his 
canine  sense  to  bear  upon  it.  He  crept  close  up  to 
Willis,  and  occasionally  growled  far  down  in  his  throat, 
for  even  the  Dragon  looked  uneasy. 

Willis,  by  no  means  a  nervous  or  anxious  man,  still 
felt  it  wise  to  keep  in  touch  with  conditions  around  him, 
and  one  morning  asked,  "  Dragon,  why  have  we  no 
callers  ?  " 

"  Everybody  'fraid,"  said  the  Dragon. 

"  Afraid  of  what  ?  " 

"  Why  all  devil-women  [sorcerers]  in  Ping-yang,  he 
say  master  give  medicine  make  every  man  crazy." 

"  Yes,"  said  Willis,  "  now  I  understand." 

Then    the    Dragon,    after    much    hesitation,    added, 

"  Black  Dragon,  he  also  think  master  make  one  very 

bad  custom.     All  the  Christian  come  and  eat  every  man 

white  bread  and  red  wine  [communion  service].     Every 

69 


yo  THE  VANGUARD 

devil-women  say  not  white  bread,  but  white  child  flesh, 
not  red  wine,  but  all  same  blood.  If  master  stay  Chosen 
[Korea]  no  can  make  that  custom.  I  think  master  very 
near  die.  If  master  die,  Dragon  he  die  all  same.  Dragon 
not  'fraid.  He  like  master  more  better,  he  no  like  devil." 

Kim,  who  called  later,  brought  in  a  copy  of  a  procla- 
mation that  had  been  posted  on  the  walls  of  the  city  by 
the  newly  appointed  governor,  General  Shin.  It  read, 
"  Know  all  people.  Let  no  man  call  on  or  have  inter- 
course with  any  foreigner  in  this  city.  By  reason  of  this 
abuse,  much  madness  is  common  among  the  people,  and 
ancient  customs  are  dishonored.  As  guardian  I  thus 
command.  Beware ! 

"  (Signed)  SHIN,  Governor. 

"  Dog  year,  8th  moon,  loth  day." 

That  night,  in  the  stillness,  there  was  a  sudden  shock 
as  of  an  explosion.  Yap,  the  fox  dog,  was  frantic,  and 
Willis  was  half  stunned.  The  Dragon,  with  his  eyes 
starting  from  his  head,  came  in  with  a  light,  which 
revealed  the  fact  that  a  jagged  piece  of  rock  had  been 
thrown  smashing  through  the  front  window. 

The  influence  of  the  governor  was  beginning  to  tell. 
How  soon  the  floating  masses  of  the  Far  East  learn  to 
know  the  wishes  of  their  magistrate.  They  watch  the 
shadows  of  his  countenance,  and  the  winkings  of  his  eye, 
and  then  rush  to  carry  out  his  wishes.  At  the  end  of  the 
fight,  they  know  that  there  is  reward,  with  whiskey  to 
drink  and  plenty  of  greasy  fare. 

Probably  some  tramp  was  rewarded  for  attempting 
Willis'  life.  He  would  have  fared  better  had  the  stone 
struck  squarely.  There  was  no  redress,  simply  to  patch 
up  the  window  and  be  patient. 


HAND  TO  HAND  71 

Throughout  Korea  there  are  stray  lepers  who  come 
from  the  far  South  and  are  found  wandering  everywhere. 
A  certain  fear  of  them  exists  and  of  the  disease,  and, 
encouraged  by  this,  they  beg  and  steal  and  push  their 
way  about  most  offensively.  It  seems  a  hard-hearted  act 
to  take  a  stick  and  say  to  a  leper, "  Out  you  go  or  111 
cane  you."  Willis  never  did  this,  but  many  times  during 
the  days  when  the  ban  was  on  him,  a  leper  hung  round 
his  kitchen. 

"  Here,"  says  the  Dragon,  "  take  this  hunk  of  white 
bread,  and  then  take  your  honorable  carcass  out  of  this 
and  don't  come  back  any  more." 

"Thanks,  thanks,"  says  the  leper,  but  next  day  he 
appeared  again. 

"  You  ?  "  says  the  Dragon,  while  Yap  looked  at  him, 
and  his  teeth  glistened. 

"  I  have  heard,"  says  the  leper, "  that  that  kind  of  dog, 
cooked  well,  with  ginseng  and  garlic,  will  cure  leprosy. 
I  have  come  to  inquire  if  it  is  so,  and  would  your  master 
sell  the  dog  or  tell  where  I  can  buy." 

*  You !  you  rotten-faced  tramp,  sell  you  master's  dog  ? 
Bag  of  carrion,  out ! "  and  the  leper  glared  savagely  as 
the  Dragon  helped  him  off  the  premises. 

The  Dragon  was  Yap's  friend,  and  any  licking  of  the 
lips  by  natives,  who  looked  in  his  direction,  called  down 
wrath. 

A  few  nights  later  there  were  heard  mysterious  crawl- 
ings  and  fingerings  that  kept  Yap  uneasy ;  but  the  neigh- 
bors' huts  were  so  close,  and  the  passing  so  frequent,  that 
it  was  impossible  to  say  just  where  the  noises  came  from. 
The  inner  window  was  open.  To  ease  his  mind,  Yap  had 
crawled  through  this,  when  suddenly  his  savage  barkings 
brought  out  Willis,  Kim  and  the  Dragon.  Yes  it  was 


72  THE   VANGUARD 

the  leper,  with  a  bundle  of  blankets  and  plunder  from  the 
kitchen.  He  tried  to  run,  but  Yap  had  him,  so  that  he 
dropped  everything  and  with  a  yell  escaped.  Yap  doubt- 
less swallowed  leper  bacilli  that  night,  but  he  still  lives, 
an  old  dog  now,  but  without  a  touch  of  leprosy. 

"  Good  dog,  Yap,"  said  the  Dragon,  "  sick  him." 

It  made  Willis  sad  at  heart  to  think  that  the  only 
caller  they  had  had  for  a  week  was  a  leper,  on  whom  they 
had  set  the  dog.  True  he  was  a  thief,  but  who  would 
not  pilfer  under  those  conditions  ? 

"  If  you  see  him  again,"  said  he  to  the  Dragon,  "  give 
him  something  to  eat  and  tell  him  not  to  steal." 

"  Yea-a-a ! "  replied  the  Dragon,  though  under  his 
breath  he  added,  "  Feed  him,  indeed,  the  old  wretch,  him 
and  his  flies  !  " 

There  came  a  break  in  the  monotony,  for  news  was, 
that  a  foreigner  who  was  ill  had  arrived  in  town,  John 
Rakes,  a  piece  of  human  flotsam,  who  kept  a  small  store 
in  one  of  the  distant  ports.  He  had  been  floating  about 
somewhere  on  a  journey  from  Russia,  it  turned  out,  and 
had  caught  smallpox.  Here  he  was  landed  in  Ping- 
yang,  with  just  a  Korean  servant  and  the  agony  was  on 
him  sore. 

Willis  had  heard  of  old  Rakes  and  his  hatred  of 
fellow-mortals  in  general,  especially  of  the  missionary, 
and  here  was  a  chance  to  lend  him  a  hand.  Though  he 
shrank  instinctively  from  the  abominable  disease,  when 
he  saw  it  squatting  in  the  street,  or  lying  near  him  in  the 
inn,  in  this  case  there  was  no  such  thought. 

He  found  the  hut ;  it  was  a  miserable  place  with  a  dark 
suffocating  room. 

"  Bring  him  to  our  home,"  said  Kim,  and  they  cleared 
out  their  best  little  room  to  take  in  old  Rakes. 


HAND   TO   HAND  73 

He  was  carried  softly,  on  a  stretcher,  and  placed  on  the 
quiet  side,  and  his  old  eyes  looked  with  much  agony 
from  the  pustules  gathering. 

"  I  caught  this  business,"  said  he,  "  about  two  weeks 
ago,  I  reckon,  away  over  on  the  Japan  side." 

He  breathed  heavily  and  talked  under  great  stress. 

Willis  and  Kim  smoothed  out  as  best  they  could  the 
wrinkles  in  his  pillow,  and  the  ruffles  in  his  soul,  so  that 
he  slept  and  rested.  The  Dragon  and  Yap  kept  back  the 
crowd,  for  now  that  there  was  no  call  for  them,  multitudes 
were  ready  to  come,  poke  holes  through  the  paper,  crowd 
each  other  and  make  all  kinds  of  noises. 

When  Rakes  awoke,  he  said  to  Willis,  "  I  have  a  sort 
of  presentiment  that  this  is  a  call  to  hand  in  my  checks, 
and  I  guess  I  might  as  well  now  as  any  other  time,  it  has 
me  bad,  yes,  yes  ! " 

Willis  had  preached  no  sermon  to  him,  but  had  given 
heart  and  attention  to  helping  the  old  man  through  the 
fight.  It  had  touched  him. 

"  I  have  always  cursed  missionaries,"  said  he ;  "  little 
did  I  dream  that  when  I  needed  it  most,  a  missionary 
would  come  and  watch  over  my  old  carcass." 

Willis  listened  and  responded.  The  quiet  touch  which 
made  him  a  good  nurse  helped  him  also  to  reach  a  man's 
soul. 

The  old  fellow  rambled  on  about  his  past  life. 

"  I've  been  most  everywhere,  picked  up  a  China- 
woman in  Canton  thirty  years  ago;  a  good  woman. 
Some  relatives  of  hers  took  the  boy  that  was  born,  and 
the  girl  went  to  the  convent.  Two  years  later  another 
boy  was  born  in  Petropavlovsk ;  that  made  one  Chinese 
and  one  Russian,  then  one  in  Japan,  and  then,  ten  years 
ago,  one  in  Korea,  all  by  one  woman,  you  know,  my  poor 


74  THE  VANGUARD 

old  Cantonese.  We  had  a  sort  of  family  reunion  a  year 
ago,  and  my  boys  all  came,  and  would  you  know  they 
could  hardly  talk  to  each  other.  One  spoke  Chinese  and 
English,  one  Russian,  one  Japanese,  and  the  youngest 
Korean  and  English.  I  was  interpreter  for  the  whole  lot 
of  them.  Yes,  yes,  they  kept  the  old  man  busy.  Who 
knows,  they  may  be  on  opposite  sides  some  day  in  the 
big  fight.  I'm  a  bit  of  a  fighter  myself,"  and  rapid 
breathing  followed  and  he  dozed  off. 

When  he  awoke  again,  Willis  said,  "  Take  some  of 
this  to  strengthen  you  and  let  me  shake  up  your  pillow." 

"  Well,  you  are  good,"  said  the  old  man. 

"  God  is  good,"  said  Willis.  "  You  haven't  forgotten 
Him  altogether,  have  you  ?  " 

"  God  ?  Lord,  we  have  not  been  on  speaking  terms 
for  the  last  forty  years." 

"  Tell  me,"  said  Willis,  "  how  that  came  about." 

"  I  hardly  know ;  I  used  to  think  about  Him  and 
pray  when  I  was  a  boy.  My  mother  was  great  at 
prayin'." 

"  Keep  away  you  [to  the  crowd],  the  old  man's  talking 
about  praying,"  said  the  Dragon,  intending  to  scare 
onlookers,  who  are  terrified  when  they  hear  of  praying. 

"  I  drifted  away,  you  know,  and  somehow  God  and  I 
got  out.  I  had  no  confidence  in  Him,  and  after  while  I 
began  to  hate  His  name.  I  hated  the  missionary  too ; 
he  seemed  like  God  and  company,  you  know ;  but  I  reckon 
it's  too  late  to  reconsider  my  views." 

"  God  is  great  on  forgiveness,"  said  Willis,  and  he 
fanned  the  flies  away,  and  put  the  old  man  to  sleep.  A 
damp  cloth  on  the  brow  kept  him  steady.  He  seemed  to 
pray  at  times. 

"  Lord,  I'm  a  tramp  from  the  Far  East,  John  Rakes. 


HAND  TO  HAND  75 

You  can  have  no  use  for  the  like  of  me,  but  this  mission- 
ary, one  of  the  men  I've  cursed  all  my  life,  bless  him. 
He  has  stood  by  me,  he  and  his  man,  here  in  this  lonely 
corner  these  days  when  I'm  down.  He  says,  too,  that 
you  are  great  on  forgiveness.  I  used  to  hate  the  mis- 
sionary, but  this  one  is  all  right,  good  stuff.  I  hated 
you  .  .  ." 

He  opened  his  eyes  and  smiled,  then  gave  his  hand, 
and  Willis  took  it.  The  poor  old  soul  was  passing  out. 

"  My  name  is  John  Rakes,"  said  he, "  a  bad  man,  never 
mind  about  me,  but  this  missionary,  God  bless  him,  from 
now  on  I'm  on  his  side." 

Willis,  Kim  and  the  Dragon,  with  two  or  three  of  the 
Christians,  buried  the  old  man,  recorded  the  date  of  his 
death,  and  sent  notice  of  it  to  the  legation. 

That  night  Kim  was  arrested  by  Governor  Shin,  and 
put  under  the  paddle  (the  official  instrument  for  beating 
criminals). 

"  Do  you  dare  to  take  to  this  doctrine  contrary  to  my 
order,  you  ill-born  wretch  ?  " 

"  Life  and  death  are  in  it,  sir,  and  forgiveness  of  sin, 
that's  why." 

"What  do  you  know  about  life  and  death?  Down 
with  him  and  lay  on  the  paddle." 

Poor  Kim,  he  was  one  of  the  first  to  share  Korea's 
throes  of  travail,  in  order  that  a  better  day  might  dawn. 

Plum  returned  from  a  trip  up  to  the  North.  "  We've 
had  a  great  time,"  said  he,  "plenty  of  listeners,  any 
amount  of  interest.  Look  here,  Willis,  we  are  going  to 
see  great  things  in  the  Northland ;  cheer  up,  the  best  is 
still  to  come." 

He  told  where  he  had  travelled,  up  through  Sun-ch'un, 
Wi-ju,  Kang-gay,  "  all  round  those  parts,"  said  he,  "  and 


76  THE  VANGUARD 

any  amount  of  people.  They  guffawed,  and  laughed,  and 
yelled  foreign-devil,  but  they  listened  between  times; 
never  you  mind,  hurrah !  I  tell  you  Pang's  a  jewel ;  he 
put  it  straight  every  time.  Thousands  have  heard.  One 
chap  hurled  a  stone  at  me,  and  I  charged  him  on  my 
wheel.  When  I  caught  him  he  was  scared  out  of  his 
wits.  He  expected  to  die,  and  prayed  me  to  have  mercy. 
I  made  him  sit  down  and  listen  till  I  preached  to  him. 
His  name  is  Wang  Suk-ee,  and  he  said,  with  his  teeth 
fairly  chattering,  'Thank  you,  I'll  believe,  I'll  believe.1 
He  didn't  mean  a  word  of  it,  but  never  mind,  he'll  come 
yet,  Wang  Suk-ee,  Wang  Suk-ee.  Wasn't  he  scared, 
though !  " 

It  was  about  this  time  that  a  mad  dog  appeared  in 
town.  There  is  lots  of  rabies  in  Korea ;  why  not  ?  Men 
frequently  foam,  and  spit,  and  bark,  and  then  die.  An 
Oriental  is  an  unconscious,  indifferent  mortal,  but  a  mad 
dog  can  excite  him.  All  the  town  sets  up  a  yell,  as  they 
would  over  a  tiger.  One  had  appeared  inside  of  the  East 
Gate,  had  gone  snapping  along  before  Willis'  house,  and 
bitten  two  pups  and  a  child  over  the  way.  The  Dragon 
in  haste  chained  Yap  and  then  told  Plum.  Like  a  flash 
he  had  down  his  Winchester,  clapped  in  half  a  dozen 
cartridges,  and  was  out  at  the  double  quick.  He  passed 
up  the  street. 

"  This  way,  this  way,"  shouted  the  crowd,  anxious 
enough  to  use  the  foreigner  against  the  mad  dog. 

Under  the  shadow  of  the  wall  went  the  dog,  while 
Plum  dodged  over  the  corner,  and  up  Moran  peak,  till 
both  were  within  sight  of  the  crowd,  that  cheered,  as 
they  saw  the  race.  Still  Plum  was  behind,  the  distance 
was  great,  and  the  dog  was  on  the  wing.  A  shot  was 
fired,  but  still  he  ran  on.  Another,  as  he  jumped  for  the 


HAND  TO   HAND  77 

wall,  sent  him  somersaulting  backwards,  down  over  the 
hill. 

The  Dragon  was  wild  with  delight  There  was  never 
such  a  shot  as  Plum.  "  See  how  he  caught  that  mad 
dog  on  the  fly." 

He  was  a  good  shot,  no  doubt,  and  there  was  death  at 
the  other  end  when  he  drew  a  bead  with  his  rifle. 

The  dog  lay  quivering  with  its  feet  in  the  air,  and  the 
crowd  rushed  towards  the  spot,  not  in  tens,  but  hun- 
dreds. Plum  left,  and  carrying  his  rifle  walked  over  the 
hilL 

Later,  when  the  evening  meal  was  over,  the  Dragon, 
with  a  look  aghast  on  his  face,  said  he  had  some  words  to 
say;  would  the  master  listen. 

"  Yes,  what  is  it  ?  "  asked  Willis. 

"  Does  every  man  go  mad  when  the  dog  bites  him  ?  " 

"  He  is  liable  to  if  the  dog  is  mad." 

"  Yes,  then  if  every  man  bites  the  dog,  will  every  man 
go  mad  ?  " 

"  I  don't  understand  you,"  said  Willis.  "  Men  don't  go 
round  biting  mad  dogs." 

The  Dragon  looked  pained.  "  Master,  you  no  savez, 
you  no  know  Korean  custom.  I  ask  if  every  man  bite 
the  dog  will  every  man  go  crazy?  and  master  he  no 
savez.  By  and  by  I  think  every  man  in  Ping-yang  go 
mad." 

Willis  was  puzzled,  as  he  often  was  with  the  Dragon, 
and  asked  him  to  explain.  "  What's  the  matter,  Dragon  ? 
tell  me." 

He  began,  "  Master  no  understand  our  custom.  In 
Korea  ten  thousand  nasty pungsok  [customs].  My  father 
eat  plenty  snake,  say  belong  good  medicine.  My  mother 
like  crow,  say  keep  devil  away.  Every  man  eat  dog, 


78  THE   VANGUARD 

just  same  master  eat  chicken,  eat  cow,  belong  good  food. 
He  no  ask,  was  dog  crazy  [mad]  dog  ?  To-day  Plum 
he  shoot  mad  dog.  After  he  leave,  old  Whip,  who  make 
coffin,  and  live  all  same  West  Gate,  he  take  home  mad  dog, 
makee  boil,  now  every  man  eat  plenty  mad  dog  plenty 
melon.  I  think  every  man  eat  mad  dog  he  go  mad." 

It  dawned  on  Willis,  and  he  called  Plum  who  turned  a 
somersault  when  he  heard  what  had  happened,  and  gave 
a  long  whoop.  Willis  went  back  to  his  room,  but  first 
told  the  Dragon  to  never  mind,  that  there  was  no  danger, 
which  exhortation  the  Dragon  could  not  understand. 

Let  us  take  a  passing  glance  at  Whip,  the  coffin  maker. 
Round  about  the  caldron  are  gathered  he  and  all  his 
friends. 

"  Put  on  some  more  fire  there  now,  a  little  red  pepper. 
Stir  him  round.  Ladle  out  that  soup  now  and  let's  have 
a  try." 

Mr.  Whip  takes  a  taste  " ya  singupso  "  (no  taste  to  it 
yet). 

"  Turn  in  some  garlic,"  says  old  Whip.  "  Stir  him 
round,  don't  let  him  burn.  Great  shot  that  to-day,  wasn't 
it?" 

"  Rake  those  straws  and  them  cobwebs  out.  Get  away 
from  here  you  offspring  of  weasels  ! " 

"  Put  some  honey  in  it,  honey  and  dog  are  all  right. 
Now  let  it  go  ;  stir  him  round." 

"  What  does  that  foreign  man  do  for  a  living  ?  " 

"  He  teaches  the  wickedness  of  God." 

"  Dear  me,  the  end  of  all  things  has  come  sure  enough  ! 
Whoop  !  Blow  him  up.  Catch  a  whiff  of  that,  did  you  ? 
Old  Scruff  and  his  brood  needn't  come  round  here  with 
their  mouths  watering.  Stir  him  round." 

A  half  hour  later,  the  fire  had  died  down,  and,  squat- 


HAND  TO   HAND  79 

ting  low  with  bowk,  spoons  and  chopsticks,  were  Whip, 
the  coffin  maker,  and  all  his  clan,  their  bits  champing  or 
rather  jaws  clashing,  as  they  enjoyed  this  Oriental  mid- 
summer night's  feast 

Willis  had  taken  a  walk  to  clear  his  brain  from  the 
frowzy  web  that  the  Dragon  had  coiled  round  it  It  was 
dark  and  all  quiet  except  the  distant  murmur  of  the  feast 
Not  knowing  what  it  might  be  he  bent  his  steps  thither- 
ward, and  came  on  it,  saw  enough  to  sicken  him  and  send 
him  back  with  the  odors  and  flavors  of  a  lost  world  min- 
gling in  his  soul. 

The  landscape  had  darkened  down  over  Willis.  There 
was  no  hope,  the  place  was  lost  and  seemed  to  like  it. 
The  foreign  influences  were  all  against  religion  and  re- 
form. There  was  disease,  death  and  madness,  the  devil 
was  on  top  with  triumph-yell.  Shoreland  had  said, 
"  give  it  up  " ;  the  girl  he  loved  refused  to  follow ;  the 
Korean  boy  Dragon  he  brooded  over  was  heathen  still ; 
most  who  had  heard  his  voice  were  uninfluenced.  Plum 
was  hopeful,  but  he  would  be  hopeful  anywhere,  that 
meant  nothing.  Should  he  haul  down  the  flag  or  push 
on?  He  turned  to  the  Book,  his  heart  ascending  to 
God  in  the  question  before  him.  He  read  on  straight 
through  Jeremiah ;  it  took  him  far  into  the  night,  but 
the  story  was  new  and  interesting.  Jeremiah,  who  lived 
away  back  yonder  six  hundred  years  before  Christ, 
had  thrashed  out  the  question  so  long  ago.  There  was 
no  give  up  to  Jeremiah.  They  smacked  him  on  the 
cheek,  they  imprisoned  him,  they  flung  him  into  the 
mire,  they  poked  fun  at  him,  they  left  him  to  the  tender 
mercies  of  a  negro,  but  it  did  not  shake  him  one  whit 
from  the  course  to  which  God  had  called  him.  His  one 
question  was,  not  success,  but  am  I  right  ?  At  this  late 


8o  THE  VANGUARD 

day,  two  thousand  five  hundred  years  after,  Willis, 
stranded  farther  to  the  East  than  ever  Jeremiah  dreamed 
of,  took  fresh  heart  and  courage,  thanked  God,  and  turned 
in  to  rest. 


CASTING  THE  DIE 

THROUGH  that  mysterious  power  of  persuasion 
by  which  one  Korean  influences  another,  Ko 
borrowed  twenty  thousand  yang,  or  four  hun- 
dred dollars.  He  never  thought  of  paying  it  again,  in 
fact  Koreans  seldom  do.  He  was  supremely  happy  in 
the  possession  of  unlimited  wealth.  Why  mar  the  bliss 
of  it  thinking  of  pay  day  ?  It  is  the  bane  of  the  little 
Kingdom,  everybody  owing  everybody.  Sometimes 
the  debt  is  paid  in  cash,  sometimes  an  equivalent  is 
given  in  the  way  of  influence,  sometimes  it  is  never  paid 
at  all,  sometimes  it  is  squared  up  in  a  fearful  row,  where 
the  creditor  appeals  to  all  the  gods  of  heaven  and 
earth  to  support  him,  with  his  eyeballs  rolling  fiery 
flame. 

Willis  pondered  sore  over  the  question  of  debt.  "  Owe 
no  man  anything  but  love,"  said  he,  and  to  keep  the 
church  clear  of  this,  took  effort  on  his  part  and  much 
earnest  thought. 

But  Ko  has  four  hundred  dollars,  all  borrowed,  and  he 
takes  a  vacant  house  and  sets  up  a  tobacco  and  candy 
shop.  Returning  friends  congratulate  him.  Fortune 
smiles  sweetly,  his  oily  face  is  lighted  somewhat,  the  past 
is  forgotten,  and  he  launches  out  into  a  successful  career. 
Day  by  day  he  buys  and  sells,  asks  credit  and  gives  credit, 
helps  this  friend  and  that,  trades  in  tobacco,  makes  candy, 
gambles  a  little  and  occasionally  takes  a  drink.  He  feels 
81 


82  THE  VANGUARD 

that  business  is  prospering,  and  imagines  that  he  ought 
to  marry.  His  old  mother  sees  to  the  kitchen. 

Six  months  go  by,  and  Ko,  in  that  confused  and  wall- 
eyed way  peculiar  to  Korea,  takes  stock.  He  gets  his 
counting  sticks  and  labors  through  the  calculation.  Ver- 
tical sticks  are  units,  and  cross  sticks  are  tens.  All  the 
odds  and  ends  belonging  to  his  real  and  personal  estate 
he  gathers  in,  and  adds  and  adds,  until  the  sum  rolls  up 
to  four  hundred  and  twenty  thousand  cash,  but  when  re- 
duced to  dollars,  equals  only  about  one  hundred,  or  a 
fourth  part  of  what  he  had  borrowed.  This  was  his  ac- 
cumulated interest  and  principal  at  the  end  of  six  months. 
In  some  mysterious  way,  entirely  unknown  to  Ko,  the 
candy  business  had  evaporated  and  the  spectre  of  debt 
loomed  up  before  him. 

He  called  the  creditors  and  said,  "  By  some  unforeseen 
dispensation  of  the  gods  I  am  out  of  money ;  how  it  has 
come  about  is  more  than  I  can  tell.  Six  months  ago  I 
had  four  hundred  dollars,  now  I  have  only  one ;  my  stu- 
pidity is  appalling.  Will  the  honorable  gentleman  please 
take  house  and  furniture,  it  is  all  I  have  to  offer.  Save  a 
poor  man." 

Gee-back,  one  of  the  creditors,  a  noisy  man,  furious  at 
this,  glared  like  a  tiger. 

«  If  you  do  not  pay  up,  you  son  of  perdition,"  said  he, 
"  I'll  eat  your  flesh,"  and  he  nipped  Ko  with  his  fingers 
and  bit  into  his  skin  like  a  pair  of  iron  pinchers. 

"  For  three  days  and  three  nights,"  said  Ko,  "  I  was  in 
torment  at  his  hands.  There  was  no  let-up  to  Gee- 
back." 

"  Pay,  pay ! "  shouted  he. 

"  I  thought  of  all  the  trials  of  earth  debt  is  the 
worst." 


CASTING  THE  DIE  8£ 

"  Principal  and  interest ! "  roared  Gee-back, "  you  fll- 
begotten  wretch." 

Out  in  the  street,  before  the  door,  he  vaulted  into  the 
air,  whirled  round  whip-top  fashion,  foamed  at  the  mouth, 
hurling  oaths  and  epithets,  then  he  squatted  in  the  room 
yelling,  "  Principal  and  interest,  you  snake  !" 

The  town  looked  on. 

Once  more  at  the  end  of  all  things,  tormented  by  the 
man  Gee-back,  with  "  face "  and  credit  gone,  Ko  con- 
cluded that  it  was  better  to  die.  That  night  he  bought  a 
pint  of  whiskey  and  ten  grains  of  arsenic,  mixed  the  two 
and  stole  away  to  Moran  Bong  (Peony  Peak).  There  he 
drank  it  off  and  said  good-bye  to  life.  Soon  he  fell  asleep 
and  knew  no  more. 

Gee-back,  finding  Ko  gone,  sent  out  parties  to  search, 
thinking  he  had  run  away.  Over  the  river  they  went  and 
up  the  hills  high  and  low,  till  they  saw  Plum  wake  him, 
and  bring  him  down  from  Peony  Peak.  They  returned 
and  told  Gee-back,  that  Ko  had  come  staggering  down 
the  hill  along  with  the  foreigner,  who  had  shot  the  mad 
dog.  They  also  found  the  empty  bottle  and  the  dregs  of 
arsenic, 

Ko  awoke,  but  somehow  his  senses  were  unhinged,  and 
things  that  surrounded  him  were  so  mixed,  that  he  did 
not  know  clearly  whether  he  was  alive  or  dead.  The 
whiskey  was  strong  and  the  arsenic  not  well  mixed.  He 
lived,  but  so  sick  and  sore. 

Said  he  to  himself,  "  I  drank  arsenic  and  should  have 
died,  but  here  I  am  in  misery." 

He  was  taken  back  home  to  his  debts  and  his  torment 
Gee-back  sat  at  his  side. 

"  You  rascal  you,"  shouted  he, "  you  wanted  to  get  out 
of  paying,  did  you,  and  so  took  arsenic  to  die,  but  I'll  fol- 


84  THE  VANGUARD 

low  you  to  the  place  of  death  and  eat  your  flesh  unless 
you  pay,  I  will." 

An  appalling  sense  came  over  Ko,  and  he  saw  great 
snakes  crawling  back  and  forth  at  his  feet,  till  he  shouted 
in  agony. 

"  Is  it  hell  I'm  in,  or  earth  ?  If  in  hell,  how  can  this 
creature  (Gee-back)  follow  me?"  Then  he  called, 
"  Where  am  I  ?  "  He  shouted,  "  I  want  to  know.  Am 
I  in  hell?" 

The  creditors,  as  they  saw  Ko's  madness,  withdrew. 
The  house  was  sold  and  he  was  carried  away.  For  a 
month  and  more,  cared  for  by  stranger  hands,  he  hung 
between  life  and  death. 

Rescued  by  Plum,  and  watched  by  kind  hearts  through 
his  recovery,  Ko  groped  blindly  into  life  once  more. 
When  his  eyes  were  clear  enough  to  see,  he  read  one  of 
Willis'  tracts  called,  "  What  is  thy  name  ?  "  He  read  the 
others  as  well,  but  this  sentence  kept  recurring,  as  though 
God  in  awful  earnestness  were  repeating,  "  What  is  thy 
name  ?  " 

"  My  name  is  Ko,  worst  name  in  all  the  Northland." 

He  read  the  tract  over  and  over,  and  the  story  of  Jacob 
that  it  told,  of  the  conflict  by  Jabbok  River,  of  the  mys- 
terious angel,  and  His  question,  "  What  is  thy  name  ?  " 
of  the  bad  man  Jacob,  the  deceiver,  the  cheat,  the  swin- 
dler, of  how  the  angel  was  after  him,  and  wanted  to 
change  his  evil  reputation,  to  change  it  from  Jacob  to  a 
Prince  of  God. 

Somehow  Ko  got  it  into  his  tangled  head  that  God  was 
holding  on  to  him,  saying,  "  What  is  thy  name? " 

"  Ko,"  said  he,  "  Ko,  Ko,  liar,  murderer,  thief,  unclean 
person  worse  than  Jacob."  Yet  the  angel  held  on,  yes, 
held  on  till  Ko's  thigh  was  out  of  joint  and  the  agony  of 


CASTING  THE  DIE  8j 

the  rack  was  on  him.  He  had  been  at  death's  door,  had 
quivered  under  the  paddle  more  than  once,  but  no  such 
pains  had  ever  entered  his  souL 

"  What  is  thy  name  ?  "  thundered  the  voice, 
"  Ko  the  dummy,  Ko  the  liar,"  until  he  loathed  him- 
self, and  wept,  and  prayed  that  he  might  die.    "  Why  did 
I  sin  ?  "  thought  he,  and  then  the  echo  was  taken  up  once 
more,  "  What  is  thy  name  ?  " 

How  it  came  he  knew  not,  he  heard  Willis,  who  told 
him  something  Ko  knows  not  now  what  it  was.  They 
prayed  together,  and  at  last  out  of  the  awful  gloom  there 
seemed  to  break  sunshine,  and  sweetest  of  singing,  which 
said,  "  Ko,  the  sinner,  child  of  God,"  and  the  question 
came  so  tenderly,  "  What  is  thy  name  ?  "  and  the  answer 
was  wafted  back,  "  My  name  is  Ko,  a  child  of  God." 


XI 

THE  PRINTING  PRESS 

THE  one-armed  Tong-hak  had  made  his  way 
north  to  his  old  captain.  Pang  he  found,  not 
only  interested,  but  the  right  hand  man  of 
Willis.  Here  he  could  learn,  as  Sir  James  had  told  him, 
the  Jesus'  doctrine,  called  by  mistake,  the  wickedness  of 
God.  Others  came  meandering  in  with  similar  questions. 
Sir  James  had  said  so  and  so ;  he  had  represented  it  thus  ; 
he  had  so  stated  the  matter.  "  Yes,  we  shall  ask  Willis 
what  the  doctrine  means." 

It  was  a  growing  question  throughout  the  far  North, 
that  Willis  and  his  men  were  kept  busy  answering.  Was 
there  money  in  it?  How  could  they  live  and  do  the 
doctrine?  If  their  wits  were  gone  and  their  eyes  were 
old,  could  they  still  do  it  ?  "  Let's  all  try  it,"  they  said, 
and  it  fermented  and  turned  and  tumbled  in  their  minds. 

To  push  on  this  gathering  force  Willis  had  written 
South  to  Foster  and  Gilbert  for  literature. 

By  dint  of  American  enterprise,  the  hum  and  roar  of  a 
press-room  was  heard  in  the  quiet  abode  of  the  ancients, 
where  Foster  and  Gilbert  were.  Out  of  this  sweat  cham- 
ber, besmeared  with  oil  and  soot,  and  manned  by  bronzed 
Orientals,  came  forth  pages,  thousands  of  them,  white  as 
snow. 

What  these  pages  said  the  reader  would  probably  be 
unable  to  make  out.  To  him  they  would  seem  but  ver- 
tical lines  with  circles,  dots  and  strokes,  in  such  shape  as 
86 


THE   PRINTING   PRESS          87 

was  never  dreamed  of,  and  no  one  ever  saw  outside  of  the 
peninsula ;  but  they  spoke  clearly  a  new  thought  to  this 
waiting  people. 

With  Gilbert  and  Foster  to  translate,  and  Willis  to  or- 
ganize a  carrying  combine,  they  were  pushed  to  the  far- 
thest limits  of  the  land.  Away  up  on  the  Yalu  they 
were  to  be  found  papering  the  walls,  sometimes  upside 
down  and  inside  out,  but,  "  never  mind,  send  on  more  " ; 
on  to  distant  Russia,  and  away  east  into  the  little  hamlets 
by  the  Sea  of  Japan.  The  shriekings  of  the  press  have 
grown,  not  ceased,  and  sandalled  feet,  bearing  the  mes- 
sage, kick  up  the  dust  on  all  the  mountain  highways. 

Many  a  time  Willis  in  his  visits  to  the  south  passed 
through  the  grimy  room,  looking  with  satisfaction  on  the 
great  machines  at  work  that  began  with  almost  nothing 
and  to-day  had  rolled  out  their  million  pages. 

The  presses  are  in  charge  of  Teller,  who  lives  all  day 
in  the  oily  air,  and  hears  only  its  roar.  He  is  necessary, 
they  will  not  go  without  him.  Many  are  his  cares,  no 
man  more  than  Teller  knows  the  need  of  Christian  pa- 
tience to  keep  one  steady  along  the  hundred  and  twen- 
tieth meridian.  His  brain  is  a  miniature  press  room  with 
the  accompaniments  thereof,  the  whirl,  the  oil,  the  soot, 
the  mistakes,  the  blunders,  the  successes.  They  occupy 
his  inmost  thoughts  and  at  times  wear  him  down. 

Teller  is  firm  in  fibre  and  kindly  in  soul,  elsewise  there 
would  be  shrieks  from  the  printers  as  well  as  from  the 
machines,  monkey-wrenches  would  fly,  bolts  and  rods,  and 
there  would  be  imprints  of  shoeblacking  on  all  the  padded 
trousers  ;  but  Teller  runs  his  world  in  no  such  way.  His 
engines  are  high  pressure,  but  the  governors  are  well 
hung,  and  his  mental  and  spiritual  gauges  are  steady. 

Willis  had  just  written  him  for  50,000  copies  of  "  I  and 


88  THE  VANGUARD 

the  Dragon,"  and  all  machines  are  going  at  the  full. 
How  many  words  of  warning  Teller  had  given  to  all  the 
hands!  How  definitely  he  had  explained  the  compli- 
cated mechanism  of  "  Billy,"  the  three  thousand  dollar 
press.  "  Let  no  one  touch  or  handle  him,  every  man  to 
his  duty  only." 

Jang,  jang,  jang,  go  the  hand  presses,  interspersed  with 
the  long  armed  sweep  and  the  mighty  roar  of "  Billy." 
The  lines  in  Teller's  face  relax,  the  smell  of  the  kerosene 
engine  is  sweet  incense,  and  its  pounding  tells  him  all  is 
well. 

Out  they  go  to  the  packing  room,  heaps  of  printed 
matter,  "  I  and  the  Dragon,"  "  I  and  the  Dragon,"  20,000 
of  them,  to  be  bound,  and  boxed,  and  sent  north  on 
jingling  ponies. 

Teller  had  not  lived  a  short  life  in  the  Far  East  with- 
out learning  the  uncertainty  of  all  material  things.  The 
printer  who  did  excellent  work  to-day,  was  taken  sud- 
denly ill  to-morrow  of  spasms,  and  before  the  evening 
was  dead.  The  matrices  that  lay  heavily  in  the  corner, 
had  taken  to  themselves  wings  and  soared  away.  No 
one  had  any  idea  of  where  they  were.  Chun,  in  charge 
of  the  stereotype,  had  gone  on  foot  to  see  his  mother, 
two  hundred  miles  off,  and  by  mistake  had  carried  away 
the  key.  Each  day  came,  bringing  its  load  of  cares,  but 
still  he  pounded  on,  until,  like  the  falling  snow  and  the 
diffusing  rain,  over  the  land  went  the  silent  leaves. 

They  were  on  the  home  stretch  now  with  "  I  and  the 
Dragon,"  and  "  Billy  "  was  doing  his  part  to  perfection. 
It  was  in  his  mind,  evidently,  to  show  the  Far  East  what 
a  Western  machine  can  do.  "  Come  on  with  your 
paper,"  he  seemed  to  roar,  and  it  went  in,  never  ceasing, 
till  the  perspiration  rolled  down  the  brown  skins,  and  the 


THE   PRINTING   PRESS          89 

numbers  ticked  off  were  beyond  the  limit  of  Oriental  cal- 
culation. 

"  How  many  does  that  make  ?  "  asks  the  runner. 

"  Several  millions,"  replied  the  piler,  and  to  an  Orien- 
tal's indefinite  eye  it  really  looked  like  it. 

But  "  Billy,"  too,  had  his  unaccountable  ailments,  and 
while  at  his  very  best  on  the  day  referred  to,  suddenly  a 
stitch  caught  him  in  the  side,  and  tore  the  sheet  of  paper. 
One  of  the  men,  not  knowing  what  he  was  doing,  but 
intending  to  set  things  right,  gave  a  random  blow  with 
the  monkey-wrench.  There  was  a  great  crash,  and 
"  Billy  "  the  giant  had  yielded  up  the  ghost. 

Teller's  eyes  filled  with  tears  when  he  saw  what  was 
done.  It  was  of  no  use  to  swear,  or  kick  the  coolie,  even 
though  he  had  been  that  sort  of  man ;  it  was  done,  and 
"  Billy  "  was  to  be  silent  for  two  months  and  more. 

"  Then,"  says  Teller,  "  we  shall  have  to  run  the  hand- 
presses  night  and  day." 

When  the  boxes  of  printed  books  came  to  Willis' 
hand,  so  clean  and  neatly  packed,  he  did  not  fail  to  realize 
the  agonies  from  which  they  had  been  evolved.  "  Give 
me  Bibles  and  good  tracts,"  said  Willis.  "  The  Bible 
must  wait  on  the  decisions  of  Gilbert,  Foster  and  Mc- 
Kechern,  but  tracts  and  introductory  books  I  will  take  a 
hand  at  myself."  He  had  attempted  in  many  ways  to 
get  good  books,  and  had  already  secured  several,  of 
which  "  I  and  the  Dragon  "  was  one.  It  was  not  an  ac- 
count of  Willis'  trials  and  hopes  with  regard  to  the 
Black  Dragon,  his  Boy,  but  a  picture  of  the  devil  wor- 
shipper, the  life  he  led,  and  his  deliverance  through  faith. 
Of  course  it  was  a  story  from  real  life.  He  had  seen  and 
lived  it  He  also  asked  the  more  earnest  among  the 
Christians  to  write  out  what  they  thought  would  catch 


90  THE  VANGUARD 

the  attention  of  the  ignorant  masses,  and  lead  them  to  a 
knowledge  of  truth.  Later  on,  Kim  wrote  one  from  his 
own  life  entitled,  "  Under  the  Paddle."  It  told  of  his 
gropings,  of  the  fears  and  torments  his  soul  had  suffered, 
which  was  the  devil's  paddle,  and  the  revelation  that  had 
come  to  him.  This  was  the  introduction,  then  the  main 
part  of  the  story,  the  coming  of  Governor  Shin  and  his 
order  as  posted  on  the  walls,  of  his  own  arrest  and  torture, 
of  his  experience  when  pinned  down  to  the  flogging 
board,  the  laying  on,  which  was  maris  paddle ;  of  how 
divine  grace  sustained  him  and  brought  him  back  tri- 
umphant to  life,  of  how  God  sent  war,  which  was  the 
Almighty's  paddle,  and  smashed  up  the  old  combine  of 
evil  and  gave  Ping-yang  a  chance — but  this  antici- 
pated. 

Willis  printed  thousands  of  these  and  sent  them  over 
the  land.  His  spare  corners  of  cask  went  into  such  in- 
vestments, and  Kim,  Pang,  and  others,  added  something 
out  of  their  savings  to  speed  it  on. 

Another  tract  that  Willis  found  helpful  was  "  Voices 
that  Speak."  It  told  of  the  silent  yet  intelligible  voices 
of  mountain  and  sky,  of  the  roar  of  cataract  and  the 
booming  of  the  thunder,  hitherto  misunderstood ;  of  how 
vain  are  drum  beatings  and  cymbal  clangings  and  pray- 
ers like  soo-sooree-saba,  which  is  only  unintelligible 
Tibetan  or  Sanscrit,  that  makes  a  noise  but  says  noth- 
ing. So  the  tract  was  divided,  Voices  without  noise, 
Voices  that  sound,  Janglings  that  are  no  voice.  Then 
came  the  explanation  as  to  what  all  voices  that  speak, 
tell  in  reason's  ear. 

But  more  important  than  tracts,  were  copies  of  the 
Gospels,  which  Willis  kept  about  him  in  thousands,  Mark, 
John,  Matthew,  Luke.  While  in  a  musty  room  at  Seoul 


THE  PRINTING  PRESS         91 

sat  Gilbert,  Foster  and  McKechern,  laboring  over  the 
task  of  Bible  translation. 

Gilbert  was  born  in  London,  but  an  American  by  nat- 
uralization, a  resolute,  unconquerable  man,  about  whom 
a  whole  story  might  be  told ;  but  he  appears  here  simply 
as  translator. 

Foster  was  an  American,  a  Methodist  from  Pennsyl- 
vania, gifted  with  a  superabundance  of  life  that  constantly 
overflowed. 

McKechern  was  a  Scot,  thistly  and  stubborn,  like  the 
rocks  of  his  native  land,  ever  thirsting  for  argument,  a 
Calvinist,  set  for  the  preservation  of  the  doctrine  of  the 
church.  He  had  discovered  a  bit  of  latent  heresy  in 
nearly  every  man  on  the  field. 

"  There's  Foster,"  said  he,  letting  himself  out  into 
broad  Scotch.  "  He's  no  that  bad  if  it  were  na  for  a  sub- 
stratum o'  Arminianism  that  has  eaten  oot  a'  the  texture 
o*  his  beein'." 

"  What's  that  ?  "  asked  Foster,  with  a  ringing  laugh. 
"  Give  it  to  me  in  English,  McKeck."  (Foster  couldn't 
pronounce  McKechern.)  "  I  don't  speak  French." 

"  French,  do  ye  ca  it,  guid  braid  Scotch,  in  which  a' 
the  teachings  o'  the  kirk  were  foucht  oot,  when  yer  fore- 
bears did  na  ken  the  difference  'atween  Popish  absolution 
and  effectual  calling." 

But  this  was  only  an  interlude,  such  as  seasoned  the 
long  tug  of  sessions  in  the  work  of  translation.  Verse 
after  verse  passed  before  the  committee,  all  eyes  on  the 
Greek,  on  the  various  renderings,  on  the  interpretations, 
on  Meyer,  on  Alford,  on  Ellicott,  on  later  day  commen- 
taries ;  while  Ye  and  Cheung  and  Cho  watched  equall5 
close  the  Mandarin,  the  Wenli,  the  Japanese.  Every 
word,  and  dot,  and  line,  came  under  consideration,  till 


92  THE  VANGUARD 

McKechern's  eyes  grew  weary,  watching  through  his 
glasses,  to  see  that  no  Calvinistic  turn  or  kink  was  lost. 

Foster  did  not  care  a  rap  for  theological  hair-splitting ; 
what  he  wanted  was  the  old  Gospel,  in  which  he  believed 
were  hidden  all  the  treasures  of  wisdom  and  knowledge. 

Gilbert  was  a  steam-engine  with  fires  burning.  His 
attitude  was  not  one  of  argument  so  much  as,  push  on, 
push  on. 

Cho,  Foster's  translator,  had  discovered  various  defects 
in  the  Bible,  and  desired  to  have  them  rectified.  He 
came  with  points  carefully  noted,  and  through  his  huge 
black  spectacles  would  ask  the  committee  to  change  such 
readings  as  "  Woman,  what  have  I  to  do  with  thee  ?  "  to 
"  Mother,  what  dost  thou  mean  ?  "  and  when  McKechern 
glowered  at  him  over  his  heap  of  books,  Cho  would  give 
his  opinions,  and  then  sit  back  dignified  as  Confucius. 

"  He's  an  awfu'  pompous  chap  yon,  and  I'm  feared  he's 
no  got  the  root  o'  the  maitter  in  him,"  was  McKechern's 
opinion  of  Cho. 

With  a  language  that  has  no  personal  pronouns,  no 
proper  plural  forms,  no  capital  letters,  no  prepositions,  no 
words  for  abstract  ideas,  the  committee  had  undertaken 
to  render  books  like  Romans,  Ephesians,  and  Galatians. 

Foster's  hair  grew  gray,  for  however  much  the  ringing 
laugh  sounded  out  from  the  translating  room,  no  one 
gave  more  heart  and  soul  to  this  all-important  work. 

At  last  the  New  Testament  was  finished,  and  bound 
together,  and  there  was  a  day  of  special  rejoicing.  The 
American  ambassador  made  a  speech  in  which  he  char- 
acterized the  day  as  one  worthy  of  note,  for  had  not  the 
Bible,  drop  all  ideas  of  denominations  and  creed,  had  not 
the  Bible  been  a  mighty  influence  for  good  in  the  Repub- 
lic beyond  the  sea  and  in  the  world  at  large  ?  "  May  it 


THE  PRINTING   PRESS         93 

be  likewise  in  this  old  and  exceedingly  interesting 
land." 

He  then  presented  each  of  the  translators  with  a 
specially  bound  copy. 

How  Foster  prized  this  souvenir  of  his  days  of  labor ! 
Next  morning  he  went  early  to  McKechern. 

"  I  want  your  autograph,  McKeck,  right  here  in  this 
leather-covered  book  of  mine.  We  haven't  lived  all  these 
years  together  without — just  put  it  here  at  the  top  of  the 
page." 

McKechern  greatly  liked  Foster,  in  spite  of  his  Ar- 
minianism.  The  more  he  saw,  the  more  he  prized  him. 
At  last,  to  his  extreme  joy,  he  learned,  on  Foster's  own 
statement,  that  he  had  been  converted  in  a  Presbyterian 
church. 

"  There  noo,"  said  McKechern,  "  I  kenned  there  was 
something  aboot  ye ;  there's  naething  in  the  warld  like 
Calvinism  to  pit  fibre  intil  a  man's  banes,  but  whit  way 
did  ye  backslide  into  Methodism  ?  " 

"  Well,"  said  Foster,  "  I  felt  so  glad  and  happy  that  I 
just  had  to  shout  Hallelujah,  and  you  know  they  never 
could  tolerate  such  goings  on  in  the  Presbyterian  church, 
so  I  had  to  backslide  and  be  a  shouting  Methodist." 

"  I'm  thinkin'  there's  perhaps  a  place  in  God's  economy 
for  us  a',"  said  McKechern.  "  I'm  mair  inclined  towards 
the  Methodists  than  I  used  to  be.  I  did  na  like  them 
yince;  we  had  nae  Methodists  in  Scotland,  but  since 
I've  been  on  the  mission  field  I've  learned  that  there  are 
God's  people  amang  the  Methodists  as  weel  as  amang  the 
Presbyterians,  but  it's  a  great  mystery." 

Nothing  was  more  interesting  to  Foster  than  the  pe- 
culiar dry  Calvinist  that  he  found  in  McKechern.  They 
had  had  a  talk  about  Willis. 


94  THE  VANGUARD 

"  He  is  great,"  said  Foster.  "  He  is  back  of  a  mighty 
work  up  North  there,  and  we  shall  hear  from  his  side  of 
the  world  yet." 

"  Oh,  aye,"  said  McKechern,  "  I  have  great  expecta- 
tions of  him,  but  his  theology  is  a  bit  shallow,  ye  ken, 
he's  ta'en  up  wi'  thae  cheap  premillennial  notions. 
Wherever  ye  get  premillennialism,  ye'll  find  it  cuts  zeal 
for  missions  and  saps  the  spiritual  life." 

"  I  hear,  however,"  said  Foster,  "  that  there  is  a  great 
shaking  up  North,  more  than  rumors  of  war.  I  don't 
know  about  premillennialism,  some  good  men  hold  that 
view." 

"  Yes,  God  forgies  and  o'erlooks  it,  grace  is  a'  sufficient, 
ye  ken." 

No  one  rejoiced  more  than  Willis  over  the  work  already 
done.  The  New  Testament  and  the  tracts  issued,  seemed 
to  set  all  the  North  land  to  studying  its  letters.  There  was 
still  fear  and  superstition  fast  clinging  to  the  people,  but 
many  eyes  were  on  the  books,  the  look  intensified  per- 
haps by  the  thundering  of  war  rumors  now  in  every  ear. 

Think  of  a  land  that  never  before  heard  of  Peter,  read- 
ing out  its  first  sentences  about  the  fishermen  of  Galilee. 
What  were  their  thoughts  when  they  learned  that  the 
greatest  house  on  earth  wears  his  name,  and  that  half  of 
Christendom  has  gone  crazy  regarding  his  power  and  at- 
tributes? Yes,  North  Korea  was  beginning  to  have  opin- 
ions about  Peter,  and  the  Master  whom  Peter  loved. 


XII 

THE  WAR 

SUDDENLY  there  was  the  sound  of  war  sure 
enough.  Sixty  thousand  Chinese  were  bearing 
down  on  the  Yalu.  They  had  crossed,  and  were 
now  thundering  with  cannon  on  towards  Ping-yang. 
Banners  of  all  colors  emblazoned  with  dragons,  and 
storks,  and  turtles,  came  streaming  into  the  city,  march- 
ing past  Willis'  door,  unwashed,  countless  Celestials,  snif- 
fing blood,  and  smelling  of  opium  and  garlic.  It  mat- 
tered little  what  it  was  about  to  them,  or  what  country, 
one  side  was  China,  and  the  other  was  not.  Ex-convicts, 
murderers,  robbers,  brigands,  constituted  the  bulk  of  the 
army,  made  up  to  begin  with  of  inscrutable  Chinese  flesh 
and  blood.  No  wonder  the  few  Christians  gathered 
about  Willis  and  implored  him  to  leave,  as  the  other  for- 
eigners had  already  gone.  But  how  could  he  with  every 
means  of  exit  closed  against  him  ?  The  Korean  people 
were  flying  in  all  directions,  leaving  their  homes  and 
their  ancestral  gods.  The  proud  city  was  deserted,  and 
the  governor  who  had  paddled  Kim  had  fled  pell-mell  for 
his  life,  leaving  the  remnants  of  his  sedan  chair  outside 
the  West  Gate. 

Thousands  upon  thousands  of  Chinamen  crushed  into 
the  city,  with  no  order  or  discipline,  full  of  noise  and 
shouting,  firing  at  random  here  and  there,  the  wildest 
kind  of  mob,  looting  and  plundering,  until  the  few  women 
left  hid  in  deathly  fear.  The  question  was,  how  could 
95 


96  THE  VANGUARD 

Willis  extricate  himself  from  this  seething  mass?  He 
had  known  the  telegraph  operator,  a  Canton  man,  and 
secretly  sent  him  a  message,  by  which  means  he  reached 
the  ear  of  the  commander,  General  Cho,  an  old  man,  who 
looked  kindly  on  the  tall,  fair-haired  missionary,  and 
gave  him  a  pass  and  two  hundred  soldiers  to  see  him 
safely  out. 

With  a  sinking  of  heart  Willis  bade  farewell  to  the  few 
friends  he  had  just  begun  to  win,  whom  he  had  to  leave 
under  such  trying  circumstances.  So  he  left  Ping-yang, 
never  to  see  it  the  same  city  again. 

From  all  points  of  the  compass,  moving  in  with  the 
precision  and  order  of  troops  on  parade,  but  unseen  by 
the  Chinese,  came  the  various  divisions  of  the  Japanese 
army  occupying  the  hills  and  ridges  round  the  city. 

On  the  eve  of  the  battle,  General  Cho  called  his  chiefs 
and  soldiers  and  made  the  following  speech  : 

"  Braves !  Look  here,  these  wojen  [Japanese  barba- 
rians] are  before  you.  They  have  caused  the  war  and 
the  gods  have  sent  us  to  destroy  them.  If  you  fight  I 
promise  a  reward  and  I'm  no  liar,  otherwise  I'll  carve 
you  up  and  make  slaves  of  your  wives  and  children. 
Fire  on  the  trees  first  and  get  the  devils  out  of  them, 
devils  roost  there,  and  help  the  wojen  ;  they  are  blue,  and 
come  from  the  East.  Heaven  is  the  father,  and  earth  is 
the  mother  of  everything,  and  man  is  their  offspring,  but 
these  wojen  are  not  men.  They  are  savages,  who  don't 
believe  in  the  Jade  God,  have  no  repentance,  no  sacrifice, 
no  ancestral  tablets,  vile  offspring  full  up  of  sin.  If  we 
didn't  destroy  them  we  should  be  sinners  too.  Think  of 
them  daring  to  oppose  the  Celestial  Empire !  Wipe 
them  from  the  earth,  ye  brave  !  Up  with  your  spears 
and  rifles  !  The  ancients  said, '  The  hen  is  not  the  herald 


THE  WAR  97 

of  the  day  but  the  rooster.'  If  the  hen  crows  at  day- 
break the  end  of  that  house  has  come.  These  rascals  let 
their  hens  run  them.  In  fact  all  over  the  barbarian  land 
of  the  wojen  there  is  hen  crowing.  Six  or  seven  steps 
forward  will  do  it ;  eight  or  ten  shots  and  the  work  is 
done.  Put  on  faces  like  tigers  and  leopards,  he-bears  and 
she-bears,  and  with  one  onset  annihilate  them." 

The  Japanese  general,  a  little  man  with  quiet  bearing, 
addressed  his  men,  "  Now,  lads,  our  work  lies  before  us, 
let  every  one  do  his  duty.  The  Emperor  trusts  you, 
Japan  is  watching,  the  eyes  of  the  world  are  on  us.  For- 
ward march." 

It  was  a  fearful  night.  Over  the  improvised  bridge 
across  the  Tatong  moved  the  Japanese  in  quiet  and  om- 
inous order.  Men  were  hit  and  fell  out  in  silence,  no 
confusion,  no  yelling,  no  he-bear  or  she-bear.  In  the 
flash-lights  were  seen  boyish  faces  keen  for  the  battle. 

Willis  asked  Yang,  an  old  man,  to  tell  him  his  story. 

"  Well,"  said  Yang,  "  it  was  the  most  disgraceful  busi- 
ness. I  assure  you  I  was  myself  in  the  greatest  of  dan- 
ger. The  Japanese  put  some  hellish  medicine  before  the 
East  Gate;  there  was  thunder  and  lightning  and  one  gate 
lay  prone.  In  they  moved,  myriads  of  them,  step  by 
step,  rifles  all  pointing  ahead  like  the  rafters  of  a  house. 
Occasionally  there  was  a  blaze  of  fire  and  a  crash.  Mean- 
while the  whole  camp  of  China  was  up,  yelling  like 
fiends.  Guns  were  going  off,  some  towards  heaven,  some 
towards  earth,  and  some  towards  your  humble  servant ; 
their  horses,  too,  were  loose,  running  wild.  Men  were 
being  shot  and  trampled  on  everywhere.  I  stayed  by  my 
house  and  was  in  the  greatest  of  danger.  Ping-yang, 
that  used  to  be  like  heaven,  was,  that  night,  all  the  same 
as  hell.  It  was  too  dark  to  see  clearly,  but  everybody 


98  THE  VANGUARD 

was  shooting  everybody.  I  could  hear  the  Japanese 
tramp,  tramp,  tramp,  all  together  till  the  ground  shook. 
The  Chinese  were  rushing  pell-mell,  shouting, '  wa-hoo 
lung-choo  ! ' 

"  Next  morning,"  said  Yang,  "  such  a  sight !  Ping- 
yang  was  a  city  of  dead  Chinamen.  General  Cho,  with 
his  flags  and  feathers,  lay  at  a  corner  of  the  street,  his 
soldiers  heaped  up  like  stones  before  a  shrine.  It  was 
very  wicked  for  men  to  kill  each  other  so.  I  have  no 
idea  even  yet  what  they  were  fighting  about.  Along  all 
the  road  to  Wi-ju  were  the  dead.  The  Japanese,  how- 
ever, were  everywhere,  and  none  of  them  that  I  could  see 
were  dead  at  all." 

The  city  of  Ping-yang  was  broken,  burnt  and  shat- 
tered. No  one  would  have  recognized  it,  the  gentry  were 
gone,  ancestral  tablets  were  lost,  graves  were  desecrated. 
But  the  sunset  was  all  glorious,  just  as  though  earth  had 
known  no  sorrow.  Piled  up  in  the  sky  were  the  evening- 
tinted  palaces  and  temples,  circled  with  halo,  and  touched 
off  with  magic  color.  Away  over  the  valley  lay  the 
shadowed  peaks  of  the  still  and  silent  earth.  Like  a  sil- 
ver trail  wound  the  Tatong,  past  Tablet  Hill,  and  the 
pine  woods  where  the  cuckoo  calls. 


XIII 
A  FALLEN  HERO 

AFTER  the  battle  Willis  returned  to  Ping-yang 
with  Sir  James.  The  old  city  had  been  ham- 
mered and  pounded.  Bodies,  still  unburied,  were 
lying  in  the  streets.  Heaps  of  debris  blocked  the  way. 
Whole  quarters  were  vacated,  where  a  month  or  so  be- 
fore, Oriental  life  had  been  running  at  its  highest. 

With  what  dismay  Willis  looked  on.  Could  this 
tumbled  smouldering  ruin  be  Ping-yang  ?  Sic  transit 
gloria  mundi.  He  searched  out  his  own  house  and  found 
it  still  standing,  but  his  furniture  had  been  smashed,  and 
scattered  fragments  of  his  books  were  found  here  and 
there. 

Yap  went  smelling  along  through  the  awful  alleyways, 
his  eyes  bleared,  and  a  sense  of  fear  upon  him.  Such 
flesh  as  dead  Chinamen,  he  never  before  had  smelt,  and 
his  fox-dog  soul  revolted  at  it.  When  he  reached  home 
he  snuffed  in  all  the  corners,  and  gave  a  loud  snort  often, 
with  his  nose  deep  in  some  hole  or  other  that  needed  in- 
vestigating. He  looked  into  the  woodshed,  when  sud- 
denly his  hair  bristled,  and  he  braced  himself  back  on 
his  hind  feet  and  barked.  The  Dragon  went  to  see  and 
lo,  there  were  two  dead  Chinese  soldiers,  with  their  huge 
sole  leather  shoes  still  on,  and  the  ribbon  sashes  and 
whim-whams  with  which  the  "  Middle  Kingdom  "  is  dec- 
orated. They  were  dead,  death  was  everywhere. 

Sir  James  on  his  tall  horse,  and  Willis  on  a  Chinese 
99 


ioo  THE  VANGUARD 

pony,  rode  out  over  the  battle-field.  There  were  the  re- 
mains of  the  Japanese  impromptu  bridge,  which  had 
been  thrown  over  the  Tatong  so  mysteriously,  and  across 
which  the  army,  long  and  serpentine,  had  crawled. 
Here  was  the  gate  where  the  Chinese  had  backed  out 
into  death  and  annihilation,  and  here  was  said  to  be  old 
Cho,  the  general  who  had  befriended  Willis,  all  that 
was  left  of  him,  dead,  and  as  yet  unburied.  Willis 
was  sick,  so  fearful  was  the  sight.  The  earth  was  a  hor- 
rible slaughter-house,  and  the  stench  in  his  nostrils  was 
appalling.  There  was  the  paddy  field  in  which  the  Chi- 
nese had  placed  their  mines,  and  had  fired  them  to  light 
the  Japanese,  not  to  annihilate  them.  Here  was  the  road 
over  which  the  retreating  army  raced  madly.  On  that 
point  were  posted  Japanese  sharp-shooters,  and  on  this. 
Heaps  of  shells  told  of  the  shots  they  had  fired,  as  they 
lay  hidden  picking  off  the  fugitives.  Here  went  the 
plunging,  screaming  horses,  and  the  blind  pitiful  China- 
men, calling  on  their  gods.  Here  the  leaden  bullets 
fired  by  keen  soldiers,  whizzed  and  spat. 

Willis  and  Sir  James  studied  the  battle-field.  To  the 
latter,  especially,  who  was  a  soldier  by  instinct,  it  was 
full  of  solemn  interest.  He  had  waited  many  years  for  a 
smashing  up  of  the  old  systems  in  Korea,  and,  somehow, 
in  this  slaughter  of  Chinese  he  seemed  to  see  it.  Willis' 
thoughts  were  otherwise.  In  the  few  bundles  of  dirty 
white  clothing,  tumbled  here  and  there,  which  marked 
dead  Koreans,  he  wondered,  was  it  Pang,  or  Kim  or  Ko  ? 
The  work  of  years  had  been  shattered  at  a  blow,  and  his 
hopes  were  down.  The  friends  he  had  made  were  gone. 

"  I  believe,"  said  Sir  James,  "  that  this  means  an  an- 
swer to  your  life  of  service." 

"  A  what  ?  "  asked  Willis. 


A  FALLEN  HERO  101 

"  Your  years  of  slow  preparation  are  over,  and  now 
you  are  to  see  the  ingathering." 

"  But  how  can  that  come  about  out  of  this  horrible 
confusion  ?  "  was  Willis'  inquiry. 

"  In  the  first  place,  Korea's  worship  of  China  ends  here 
on  this  battle-field;  in  the  second  place,  your  proud, 
wicked  city  has  been  taught  a  lesson  and  humbled  under 
the  paddle,  and  nothing  is  better  at  times,  for  Oriental 
character,  than  its  broad  telling  sweep.  We  are  to  see 
great  things  on  this  ground  from  now  on.  I  am  con- 
vinced that  your  days  of  preparation  are  over." 

This  seemed  a  strange  interpretation  to  Willis,  but  it 
took  hold  of  him,  for  he  was  a  great  admirer  of  Sir 
James'  keen  insight.  This  knight  of  the  lancet  preached 
no  sermons,  but  his  hope  and  his  model  was  the  Man  of 
Galilee,  and  in  humble  admiration  and  worship  of  Him, 
he  had  spent  his  young  active  years  in  the  dark  lazaretto. 
The  precision  of  his  aim,  Willis  had  never  failed  to  see. 
Could  it  be  true  ? 

They  rode  through  the  North  Gate,  past  Kija's  tomb, 
where  the  pines  were  scarred  by  the  fight.  Already,  in- 
side of  the  city,  Koreans  were  removing  the  bodies  and 
clearing  the  streets.  They  had  come  back  after  the  war 
had  died  away  to  the  north,  and  were  looking  out  their 
homes,  and  making  preparation  to  live. 

How  delighted  all  were  to  see  Willis ;  Christian  and 
non-Christian,  he  was  their  angel  of  light ;  somehow  his 
presence  meant  peace  and  safety,  and  they  gathered 
round  him.  They  had  heard  from  the  Dragon  that  he 
had  come  back  that  morning ;  and  Sir  James !  To 
think  that  he  would  come  north  out  of  pity  for  such 
fragments  as  they  were!  Here  was  the  Dragon  with 
Yap  tied  to  a  string,  all  smiles,  for  with  him  were  Pang, 


102  THE  VANGUARD 

and  Kim,  and  Ko,  bedraggled  somewhat,  and  looking 
pinched,  but  safe.  It  was  indeed  Willis'  first  day  of 
jubilee.  Never  in  his  life  had  any  meeting  been  so  grati- 
fying. Each  told  his  story  of  escape,  his  own  impression 
of  the  battle,  and  gave  an  account  of  the  friends  and  rela- 
tives. Most  of  Willis'  people  were  known  to  be  in  safety, 
some  few  were  not  accounted  for. 

For  as  many  days  as  Sir  James  remained  in  Ping- 
yang,  he  poured  in  the  oil  of  joy,  and  bound  up  the 
broken-hearted.  But  the  time  sped  and  we  see  his 
farewell  to  Willis,  and  his  return  over  the  hills  to 
Seoul. 

It  is  a  journey  of  four  days  by  horse,  and  through  it  there 
lived  with  him  the  impression  that  this  part  of  the  fight 
was  over.  Along  the  way  the  ignorant,  trembling  peas- 
ants, hailed  him  with  eager  joy.  Would  he  please  tell 
them  what  was  coming  ?  Should  they  all  die  ?  They 
had  dreamed  of  great  guns  barking  everywhere,  would 
he  please  stay  or  give  them  some  assurance  ?  His  one 
answer  was,  "  Cheer  up,  friends,  now  you  are  free  to  hear 
the  gospel,  the  war  is  over." 

Two  weeks  later,  a  fast  courier,  a  sweaty-smelling 
coolie,  who  had  run  one  hundred  and  eighty-five  miles 
in  sixty-eight  hours,  dropped,  gasping  on  Willis'  steps. 
From  his  greasy  pocket  he  unwrapped  a  letter  and  offered 
it  with  both  hands.  He  was  one  of  those  roadsters, 
whose  twisted,  knotted  muscles  never  tire,  and  whose 
long  hard  pace  would  break  any  horse.  An  hour  of  rest, 
with  some  rice,  and  a  moment  of  Oriental  sleep  would 
set  him  on  his  feet,  fresh  as  ever,  and  away  would  go  the 
fleeting  miles.  They  are  marvels  these  brown-skinned 
racers,  who  never  wash,  and  who  smell  most  "  awful  vile." 
He  was  a  fast  courier,  who  carried  the  letter,  the  dire 


A  FALLEN  HERO  103 

contents  of  which  he  knew  fall  well  for  it  touched  a  great 
light,  that  shone  into  his  coolie  life. 

Willis  read  it;  it  was  from  Gilbert.  "  Sir  James  is 
down  with  typhus;  this  is  die  fifth  day;  make  no  delay, 
but  come." 

He  wrote  a  hasty  reply,  and  two  hours  later  away  went 
the  racing  coolie  in  his  wisp  of  trousers  and  sandalled  feet 
Willis  followed,  as  fast  as  relays  of  horses  could  carry  him, 
but  he  saw  nothing  more  of  the  courier  who  was  already 
far  on  his  way. 

When  he  arrived,  it  was  the  twelfth  day  of  this  deadly 
fever.  In  his  lucid  moments,  Sir  James  recognized 
friends,  gave  directions  about  his  own  treatment,  warned 
all  to  be  careful,  so  as  not  to  run  greater  risks  than  neces- 
sary, and  smiled  when  Willis'  face  shone  in  upon  him. 

He  said, "  This  is  a  dose  fight  of  mine,  Willis  ;  chances 
are  about  even." 

Then  he  would  wander  away ;  sometimes  he  was  in  the 
wards  where  they  were  calling  for  him ;  he  endeavored  to 
respond,  but  there  were  so  many  voices.  Why  was  he 
single-handed  against  the  multitude  and  they  so  sorely  in 
need  ?  Then  he  would  brighten  up  and  say,  "  Yes,  that's 
right.  Ask  Willis  now,  and  Gilbert  and  Foster,  they'll  tell 
you."  Then  he  was  on  the  battle-field  again.  "  Why 
do  these  Chinese  run  ?  Look  there,  right  into  that  trap ! 
Poor,  stupid  Chinamen !  But  never  mind,  that  sets  Korea 
free.  Some  of  us  must  drop." 

Then  he  opened  his  eyes. 

«  Wfflis,  you  have  a  brave  heart,  old  fellow.  You've 
won  the  fight.  I  am  losing  this  time,  me  and  the 
Chinese.  We  were  not  worth  anything  special,  but  it 
all  counts,  you  know.  Deal  tenderly  with  the  lads  I've 
stitched  and  patched  on." 


104  THE  VANGUARD 

Again  he  was  away  as  the  fires  raged  within  him,  and 
the  anxious  watchers  sat  waiting. 

"  I'm  only  a  surgeon,"  he  murmured,  "  don't  know 
how  to  preach,  but  that's  what  I  meant,  you  know.  .  .  . 
Wang,  my  lad,  does  it  pain  you  ?  Put  him  down  gently 
now.  .  .  .  You  want  to  know  what  it  is  to  believe  ? 
I'm  not  a  good  hand  to  explain,  but  listen,  and  then  go 
ask  again.  .  .  .  Steady  now,  Jack  [the  tall  horse], 
don't  trample  this  crowd  of  babies  in  the  street.  .  .  . 
How  is  your  Majesty  ?  Yes,  oh,  I  can  fix  that  all  right." 

As  the  days  went  by  palace  runners  came  and  went, 
and  sometimes  the  king's  cousin  in  silken  robes,  but  the 
news  was  intensified  every  hour,  and  the  anxious  faces  of 
Willis,  Gilbert,  Foster  and  McKechern  told  the  story. 
Could  it  be  true  that  their  physician,  on  whom  so  many 
depended,  was  going  ? 

A  last  quiet  word,  a  last  smile,  as  the  fever  lifted  for  a 
moment,  marked  his  farewell.  He  said  good-bye  to  his 
servants  and  the  old  soldier  who  used  to  run  by  him. 

"  I  see  a  great  company  gathering,"  said  he,  "  many 
thousands,  all  round  you,  Willis.  .  .  .  Thank  God." 

Foreign  ministers,  consuls,  commissioners,  his  Majesty's 
representatives  and  all  the  riffraff  of  cooliedom,  as  well, 
attended  the  funeral  of  the  great  and  good  physician. 
Who  loved  him  most,  the  old  woman  to  whose  hours  of 
pain  he  had  brought  relief,  or  his  Majesty  the  King  ? 
Who  missed  him  most,  Jack,  the  tall  horse,  whose  eager 
note  was  heard  as  a  footfall  passed  the  door  calling  his 
master  to  come,  or  the  uncombed  coolie  race-horse,  who 
had  carried  the  letter  to  Ping-yang,  and  who  now,  seated 
on  a  heap  of  broken  tiles  at  the  gateway,  wept  ? 

Over  the  four  miles  of  uneven  road  the  procession 
wended  its  way,  till  it  reached  the  quiet  hill  by  the  river. 


A  FALLEN  HERO  105 

There  he  was  buried,  he  whom  they  loved.  There  he 
should  rest,  and  his  monument  stand  in  sight  of  the 
junks  moving  to  the  sea,  the  white  shaft  to  tell  its  story 
of  a  life  of  faithfulness. 

The  government  made  special  note  of  his  loss.  No 
one  would  ever  rise  to  take  his  place.  There  was  sincere 
regret  and  sorrow  in  the  palace  of  the  Orient.  Old  Mrs. 
Om,  as  well,  who  lived  in  Forgotten  Alley,  with  her 
wrinkled  jaw,  had  nowhere  now  to  tell  her  sorrows. 

To  Willis  it  left  a  sinking  sense  of  hopelessness.  Never 
to  see  his  face  or  hear  his  voice  again  on  earth,  seemed 
impossible  to  realize,  for  no  name  in  the  Hermit  Land 
had  meant  so  much  to  him.  He,  Gilbert,  Foster,  and 
McKechern  walked  home  together.  There  was  Fire- 
blower,  too,  the  Independent,  and  some  ladies  of  the 
mission.  Fireblower  had  no  thunders  to  emit  about  the 
glories  of  independence  and  doing  as  you  pleased,  and 
there  were  no  points  in  Calvinism  mentioned  that  day  by 
McKechern.  Music  had  ceased  to  play,  it  was  a  night 
march  for  the  missionary,  with  muffled  tread  only,  all 
else  silence. 


XIV 
MAJOR  PAK 

KO  had  been  cared  for,  watched  and  tended,  in  the 
home  of  Major  Pak,  an  old  man  with  proud  face 
and  wide  hat,  known  over  the  kingdom  as  the 
vindicator  of  Korea's  honor  in  the  days  of  '66.     Pak  had 
become  a  famous  historical  character ;  now,  however,  he 
was  sixty  years  of  age,  and  as  fifty,  or  thereabouts,  marks 
the  dividing  line  between  public  and  private  life  in  the 
Hermit  Land,  he  had  retired  into  the  obscurity  of  an  old 
man's  existence. 

His  fame  had  come  thus : 

In  the  year  1866,  on  the  i$th  of  the  7th  moon  (about 
Aug.  1 8th),  there  came  sailing  up  the  Tatong  River,  a 
black,  tall  masted  foreign  ship,  fearful  to  look  upon. 
With  flood  and  high  tide,  up  she  sailed,  drawing  eight 
feet  of  water,  past  all  the  known  limits,  almost  to  the 
very  city  of  Ping-yang.  It  was  a  sailing  ship,  called 
The  General  Sherman,  from  the  unheard  of  regions  of 
America. 

The  cry  " peeran  "  (escape  for  your  lives)  was  raised,  and 
many  fled  to  the  hills.  So  general  was  the  exodus,  that 
the  governor  issued  an  order,  commanding  all  to  remain 
in  their  homes,  on  pain  of  death.  A  great  gun,  fired  as 
the  ship  came  to  anchor,  fairly  paralyzed  the  city. 

But  high  tides  passed  away,  and  the  proud  ship  lay 
deep  in  the  mud,  keeled  over  to  one  side,  the  long  mast 
pointing  anglevvise  across  the  land. 
1 06 


MAJOR   PAK  107 

Messengers,  with  news  of  the  visitor,  hastened  to  Seoul, 
making  the  journey  by  relays  of  post-horse  in  two  days, 
ninety  miles  a  day.  Some  little  attempt  at  parley  was 
made,  through  a  Chinaman  on  board,  but  for  the  most 
part,  the  ship  and  the  city  looked  at  each  other  from  the 
distance. 

After  a  month's  hanging  fast  in  the  mud,  the  fatal  word 
came  from  the  regent  to  destroy  all  on  board  and  burn 
the  ship. 

It  was  a  mad  night  in  Ping-yang.  No  one  can  imagine 
the  Far  East,  who  has  not  seen  it,  when  it  once  scents 
blood.  Mercy  is  forgotten ;  men  and  women  become 
tiger's  whelps,  with  claws  and  teeth  unsheathed. 

There  was  a  noisy  conference  held  in  the  governor's 
Yamen.  It  was  easy  enough  for  His  Immaculate  High- 
ness to  say,  "  Kill  all  on  board  and  burn  the  ship,"  but 
how  was  it  to  be  done  ?  A  combined  attack  was  pro- 
posed for  next  day,  from  all  points,  with  guns,  stones, 
bows  and  arrows. 

The  attack  came  off  amid  the  wildest  disorder.  Yell- 
ing like  Afghans,  from  all  sides  of  the  city  streamed  these 
white-coated  warriors.  On  the  hills,  thousands  of  people 
thronged  to  see.  The  fated  white  men  on  board  looked 
out  on  the  seething,  foaming  mass  closing  round  them. 
Emboldened  by  their  silence  and  inaction,  the  Koreans 
crowded  down  to  the  very  banks  of  the  river.  Suddenly 
the  great  gun  went  off  again,  fire  and  smoke  rolled  into 
the  crowd,  and  with  the  rattle  of  smaller  guns  the  whole 
attacking  force  stampeded.  A  dozen  or  more  of  the 
warriors  of  Ping-yang  lay  tumbled  in  the  dust,  and  the 
American  ship  henceforth  became  a  huge  black  spectre 
full  of  awful  mystery.  No  one  dare  approach  it,  and  for 
a  day  or  two  it  was  viewed  only  from  the  farther*  distance. 


io8  THE  VANGUARD 

Ping-yang  was  about  to  give  up  the  attempt  when  Pak,  a 
Yamen  steward,  came  forward  to  say  that  he  would  un- 
dertake the  extirpation  of  these  foreign  savages.  At  once, 
all  eyes  were  on  Pak,  for  him  to  succeed  meant  undying 
fame,  if  he  failed  it  might,  according  to  the  methods  of 
the  East,  go  hard  with  him. 

He  took  in  hand  two  flat-bottomed  boats,  piled  them 
high  with  inflammable  brushwood,  scattered  sulphur  over 
the  top,  fastened  a  charge  of  gunpowder  to  each,  and  ran 
a  long  fuse  thereto,  a  cable  also  was  extended  to  each 
bank  of  the  river  and  Pak  awaited  his  opportunity. 

"  All  that's  needed,"  said  he,  "  is  a  misty,  foggy  morn- 
ing." 

The  day  following,  as  if  in  response  to  the  wild  hopes 
of  the  city,  a  dense  fog  lay  over  the  valley  and  the  river. 
The  black  ship  was  shrouded  and  nothing  could  be  seen 
at  fifty  yards.  The  fuse  was  timed,  and  lighted.  On 
each  bank  brown  hands,  holding  the  cables,  guided  the 
boats  into  the  stream.  Slowly  they  drifted,  nearer  and 
nearer  the  fated  vessel,  then  one  charge  of  gunpowder 
went  off  and  the  scow  and  its  load  was  a  mass  of  flames. 
Belching  forth  sulphur  smoke,  it  drifted  right  on  to  The 
General  Sherman,  and  the  fog  lifted  so  that  Ping-yang 
might  see.  There  was  no  time  for  the  big  gun,  no  push- 
ing off  of  the  flaming  scow,  no  scattering  the  crowd ;  in 
a  moment  the  whole  ship  was  ablaze,  and  the  doomed 
white  men  plunged  over  the  side  into  the  river.  Wild 
exultant  bloodhounds,  with  stones  and  guns  and  clubs, 
followed  them  down  the  bank.  Here  and  there  victims 
were  hauled  out,  clubbed  and  hacked  to  pieces. 

Two  or  three  were  taken  alive,  and  led  into  the  city, 
under  command  of  Pak,  and  shown  to  the  governor  as 
trophies  of  the  day.  The  governor  and  hangers-on 


MAJOR   PAK  109 

looked  with  wonder  at  these  brawny-armed  men  with 
white  skin,  blue  eyes  and  wavy  hair.  After  his  curiosity 
was  satisfied,  he  ordered  them  knocked  in  the  head  and 
carried  out  of  the  city. 

It  was  a  proud  day  for  Ping-yang.  Pak's  name  be- 
came a  talisman  against  all  foreign  devildom.  Every  man 
was  dead,  and  only  the  iron  ribs  of  the  boat  remained. 
The  anchor  chains  were  unfastened  and  hung  in  triumph 
on  the  East  Gate  of  the  city,  where  they  still  re- 
main. 

Pak  was  gazetted  major,  decorated  by  his  Immaculate 
Highness,  the  Regent,  and  honors  were  showered  upon 
him.  But  thirty  years  have  passed,  and  there  is  anxiety 
in  the  home  of  Major  Pak.  He  sleeps  uneasily  and  eats 
but  little.  Distress  has  overtaken  him,  but  whether  from 
some  offended  spirit,  or  because  of  internal  sickness,  his 
people  do  not  know.  His  wife  was  dead,  so  there  was 
no  woman's  ear  into  which  to  pour  his  trouble.  His 
friend  Wang,  whom  he  trusted,  had  joined  the  Christians. 
He  used  to  be  proud  of  his  own  worldly  fame,  and  buoyed 
along  by  it,  but  now  it  counted  as  nothing.  A  gnawing 
something  had  worked  its  way  into  his  soul,  that  he  could 
not  get  clear  of.  He  was  aware  that  it  had  to  do  in  some 
mysterious  way  with  this  foreign  doctrine.  A  marvellous 
change  had  come  over  the  vagrant  Ko,  who  also  now  at- 
tended the  meeting-house. 

On  Sunday,  Pak  made  his  way  to  the  chapel,  alone, 
with  intent  to  be  seen  as  little  as  possihle.  He  was  im- 
pressed by  the  spirit  that  moved  the  company  of  worship- 
pers, all  of  one  heart  and  one  mind.  Among  them  was 
Wang,  the  tight-fisted,  worldly  man,  that  used  to  be,  a 
believer,  triumphant.  The  major  left  early,  and  resolved 
to  face  the  shame  and  call  on  Willis. 


no  THE   VANGUARD 

It  was  night,  and  the  Dragon  with  considerable  air  of 
victory  announced  Major  Pak. 

"  Show  him  in,"  said  Willis,  and  thus,  for  the  first  time, 
they  came  face  to  face.  Pak  was  almost  as  tall  as  the 
American,  and  infinitely  more  magnificent. 

"  Peace  be  to  you,"  said  he. 

"  And  to  you  peace,"  replied  Willis. 

"  I  have  called,"  said  Pak,  "  because  I  am  in  distress. 
You  know  that  many  years  ago  I  destroyed  your  coun- 
trymen. They  asked  life,  but  we  refused  it.  I  have 
come  to-night  to  ask  life  of  the  Teacher." 

"  What  seems  to  be  the  matter  ?  "  asked  Willis. 

"  It's  this  way,"  said  the  major.  "  You  know  my 
friend  Wang,  who  has  joined  your  company,  told  me  of 
the  doctrine,  and  urged  me  to  '  trust,'  as  he  said,  and  I've 
had  no  rest  since.  There's  that  reprobate  Ko  also.  Just 
why  a  religion,  if  it's  good,  should  bring  a  man  misery  I 
don't  see." 

"  Does  the  major  truly  want  to  know? "  asked  Willis. 

"  To  be  sure,  I'm  all  pent  up  inside,  and  can't  live  in 
this  way,"  and  his  face  emphasized  the  words. 

"  Do  you  know  of  Christ  ?  "  was  the  question. 

"  Perfectly,"  said  he.  "  Son  of  God,  died  for  us ; 
Wang  told  me  all  about  Him." 

"Then,"  said  Willis,  "just  believe  on  Him,  and  He'll 
fix  your  inside  all  right." 

"  May  I  tell  a  story,"  said  he,  and  Pak  listened. 
"  There  used  to  be  red  men  in  our  country,  many  years 
ago,  and  one  was  a  great  warrior,  and  his  name  was  Big 
Thunder.  The  people  feared  him  exceedingly,  for  he 
was  very  terrible.  He  lived  in  a  wigwam  of  pine  branches 
and  prayed  to  his  gods,  and  carried  a  knife  and  a  long 
bow.  Once  there  came  by  his  tribe,  two  teachers,  a  pale- 


MAJOR  PAK 


MAJOR   PAK  111 

face  and  a  red  man,  and  they  told  Big  Thunder  of  Jesus, 
who  had  come  to  save  him.  The  mighty  man  listened 
and  noted  what  was  said — how  gentle  this  Jesus  was. 
Partly  he  felt  inclined  to  follow  Him,  then  he  hesitated, 
for  there  was  his  long  knife,  would  he  have  to  give  that 
up  ?  He  heard,  too,  how  the  Saviour  loved  His  enemy, 
and  he  thought  regretfully  of  his  war-paint  and  spear ; 
how  Christ  humbled  Himself,  till  Big  Thunder  questioned 
if  he  would  have  to  become  a  common  red  man  and  be 
no  longer  chief. 

"  The  teachers  went  away  and  a  fierce  conflict  took  place 
in  the  soul  of  Big  Thunder.  It  was  a  fight  between  God 
and  the  Indian  war-chief.  The  Lord  wanted  him  alto- 
gether, and  he  did  not  wish  to  yield.  At  last  he  took 
his  bow,  arrows,  and  long  knife,  and  laid  them  on  the 
ground,  and  said, '  Here,  Lord,  I  give  them  up  to  Thee,' 
but  his  soul  found  no  peace.  Next  day  he  led  out  his 
squaw,  and  little  red  papoose  and  said,  '  These,  too,  I 
give,'  but  the  agony  grew  only  deeper.  Last  of  all  in 
despair  he  piled  his  belongings  up,  wife  and  baby  on  the  top, 
and  said,  '  Lord,  I  come  in  misery,  take  everything,  it  is 
all  given  to  Thee,'  but  Big  Thunder's  heart  found  no 
place  of  rest.  At  last  a  thought  struck  him ;  he  climbed 
up  by  his  squaw  and  baby  and  said, '  Take  Big  Thunder, 
too.'  He  meant  every  word  of  it,  for  the  storm  in  his 
soul  was  calmed,  and  the  red  man  became  a  great  chief 
for  Jesus." 

"  Does  the  major  understand  ?  This  religion  is  just  a 
giving  up  of  self  to  Christ,  that's  all  it  is.  It  is  the  only 
cure  for  your  distress,  and  the  only  way  you  can  find 
life." 

It  was  a  marvel  to  the  major  that  this  American 
should  care  for  him,  and  tell  him  so  earnestly,  and  pray 


112  THE   VANGUARD 

in  his  behalf.  Why,  truly  his  soul  was  full  of  joy  already, 
what  did  it  mean,  as  he  wound  his  way  homeward 
through  the  city  ?  Many  voices  within  him  seemed  to 
be  saying,  "  Yes,  all  that  I  have  is  Thine." 

The  Dragon  had  had  his  hair  combed,  and,  clad  in  a 
suit  of  brilliant  white,  he  was  almost  too  clean  to  look  at. 
Such  immaculate  coats  and  trousers  as  the  Dragon  de- 
veloped at  times,  seemed  all  out  of  keeping  with  the  sur- 
roundings so  much  of  earth,  earthy. 

"  It  is  very  good,  master,  when  the  great  men  call," 
said  the  Dragon. 

"  Yes,"  said  Willis,  in  a  lazy  kind  of  tone. 

"  Is  the  big  man,  major,  that  called,  going  to  do  the 
Doctrine  ?  "  inquired  the  Dragon. 

"  Suppose  you  try  doing  the  Doctrine  yourself, 
Dragon,"  suggested  Willis  by  way  of  reply. 

"  I  ?     I  do  whatever  master  does." 

"  But  the  Doctrine  says  you  ought  to  love  your  ene- 
mies and  those  you  don't  like.  Do  you  do  that, 
Dragon?" 

"  You  can't  do  that  in  Korea,"  was  his  reply.  "  By 
and  by  master  know  better." 

"  No,  no,"  said  Willis,  "  when  Dragon  loves  those  he 
don't  like,  from  that  day  Dragon  begins  the  Doctrine, 
not  before." 

Master  and  servant  differed  emphatically  in  their  views. 

The  Dragon  departed,  and  communed  thus  with  his 
soul,  "  In  some  ways  wise,  good  master ;  in  others  abso- 
lutely hopeless.  Think  of  loving  everybody.  Whew  j 
If  I  wasn't  here  he  wouldn't  have  any  room  to  sit  down. 
Old  Rags,  round  the  corner,  would  come  and  stay  all 
day  and  talk  and  talk,  and  those  Kwak  boys  would  do 
the  Doctrine  and  steal  everything.  Love  everybody? 


MAJOR    PAK  113 

Let  everybody  do  what  they  like  to  you  ?  That's  a  crazy 
doctrine.  Oh  wka  doong  doong"  and  the  Dragon  began 
to  sing. 

Without  telegraph  or  newspaper,  word  had  it  that 
Major  Pak  had  yielded  to  the  Doctrine  and  every  heart 
in  the  church  beat  fast  with  joy.  Pang  shouted  "  Halle- 
lujah ! "  He  was  on  a  wider  crusade  now  than  ever  fell 
to  Tong-hak.  Wang,  the  buyer  and  seller,  had  made  an 
exchange  and  won  a  man ;  great  was  his  delight,  never 
had  he  tasted  such  a  market  day  before.  Little  Mrs. 
Kim,  too  glad  to  stifle  speech,  said  to  the  old  major,  "  My 
father,  I'm  so  thankful." 

The  old  man  bowed  his  gray  head  to  Willis.  Once  it 
had  worn  a  victor's  crown  smeared  with  blood,  henceforth 
it  shall  wear  another  crown  that  fadeth  not  away. 


XV 
TO  THE  NORTH 

IT  was  now  "  forward  march  "  along  the  line.  Other 
help  had  come,  and  Willis  and  his  colaborers  entered 
on  systematic  invasion  of  the  far  North.  All  the 
land  from  the  Yalu  to  Muravieff  was  included  in  his  pur- 
pose. As  a  result  of  the  war,  and  just  as  Sir  James  had 
foreseen,  they  were  suddenly  cut  loose  from  China  and 
China's  gods.  Their  paper  charms  and  other  supersti- 
tious treasures  had  been  lost,  even  the  family  tablets  were 
missing,  ancestral  graves  had  been  desecrated,  and  life 
had  to  be  begun  anew  from  the  beginning.  The  day  for 
which  he  had  waited  was  come. 

A  procession  was  getting  under  way  for  an  invasion 
of  regions  hitherto  untouched.  Before  Willis'  house  was 
a  group  of  squealing  ponies,  that  kicked  and  bit  at  each 
other.  They  had  pack-saddles  on  their  backs,  and  were 
in  waiting,  each  for  his  missionary  load.  They  seemed 
anything  but  the  pious  missionary,  these  ponies.  Round 
and  plump  they  were,  but  wicked  in  spirit  and  ready  to 
bite  through  any  kind  of  armor  plate.  With  no  end  of 
confusion  and  jingling  of  bells,  all  shouting  at  once  the 
mapoos  (horse  boys)  roped  on  the  packs.  Ten  of  them 
were  full  of  books,  tracts  and  New  Testaments,  some  in 
Chinese,  most  in  native  character.  Five  ponies  were 
laden  with  food  supplies  and  "  cash,"  and  another  five, 
with  light  loads,  served  to  carry  the  party. 

There  were  twelve  mapoos,  Pang,  Kim,  the  Dragon, 
114 


TO  THE  NORTH  115 

Willis  and  Plum,  making  in  all  twenty  horses  and  seven- 
teen men. 

Every  one  in  Ping-yang  knew  about  it.  It  was  all 
quite  proper.  Willis  would  make  a  great  journey  to 
preach  the  Doctrine,  and  Plum  would  go  along. 
There  was  good  will  on  all  faces.  "  Peace,"  said  the  old 
women ;  "  Peace,"  said  the  men.  "  May  your  honorable 
journey  be  peace,"  said  the  little  boys.  The  old  shattered 
city  had  had  its  wounds  bound  up,  and  now  smiled  on 
Willis.  It  regarded  him  as  its  white  prince,  who  had 
stood  by  in  the  days  of  desolation.  The  leaves  of  his 
red  books  fluttered  in  all  the  homes  of  Ping-yang,  "  I 
and  the  Dragon,"  "  Voices  that  Speak,"  "  What  is  Thy 
Name  ?  "  They  were  all  true,  every  word,  said  the  peo- 
ple. "  Go  in  peace  and  come  back  ere  long."  This  was 
the  wish  of  the  old  woman,  too,  who  lived  under  the  un- 
combed thatch  by  the  North  Gate. 

Out  went  the  line  of  ponies  in  musical  procession. 
They  seemed  to  realize  that  now  there  was  no  time  for 
kicking,  or  biting,  or  standing  on  their  heads ;  they  must 
settle  down  to  the  business  of  the  journey.  The  ringing 
of  the  bells,  and  the  jingling  of  the  steel  rings  that  hang 
under  the  pony's  chin,  tell  the  rate  at  which  he  goes. 
There  is  a  rapid  jing,  jing,  jing,  that  plainly  says,  six 
miles  an  hour ;  again  as  the  day  wears  on  there  is  a  sort 
of  half  muffled  refrain  taken  up,  that  says  only  four,  and 
again  there  is  a  spasmodic  jump  jingle,  when  the  mapoo 
lays  on  the  whip  that  dies  down  soon  to  no  sound  at  all, 
that  says  two  miles  and  a  half  an  hour.  The  two  latter 
paces  are  known  to  all  travellers ^n  Korea.  Willis  knew 
them  well,  and  often  sighed  for  the  rapid  jing,  jing  of  six 
miles.  Plum  knew  them  too,  and  was  determined  to 
have  no  more  second  rate  pacers  in  his  company.  He 


n6  THE   VANGUARD 

had  selected  them  this  time  with  care,  and  the  refrain 
that  resulted,  when  all  the  bells  chimed  together  and 
made  the  valleys  ring,  was  music  to  his  soul.  So  de- 
lighted was  he,  with  the  charm  and  freedom  of  hill  and 
valley,  that  he  burst  out  in  accompaniment  in  clear  tenor 
notes,  that  set  all  the  people  wondering  what  the  sound 
could  be  that  had  fallen  upon  them. 

On  one  side  of  Plum's  saddle  hung  a  baby  organ ;  on 
the  other  ammunition  and  firearms,  and  the  procession 
moved  on. 

The  wondering  passers  counted  all  the  twenty  ponies. 

"  Where  are  you  going  ?  "  asks  one  old  fellow. 

"  Everywhere,"  replied  the  Dragon. 

"What  for?" 

"  For  the  Gospel." 

"  Then  this  is  not  the  same  as  the  Wickedness  of 
God  ?  " 

"  Never  !  "  said  the  Dragon. 

Willis  gave  him  a  red-covered  leaflet,  and  the  old  man 
passed  on. 

Three  hours  later  there  was  shouting  from  the  rear, 
and  calling  from  the  mountainside.  Some  one  was 
following  on  the  run,  and  begging  them  to  stop.  What 
could  such  sounds  of  distress  mean?  They  all  waited, 
and  Pang  dismounted  to  see.  It  was  the  old  man  who 
had  taken  the  red  leaflet,  three  hours  before.  What  was 
he  after;  did  he  want  to  be  a  disciple?  Never;  he 
had  come  all  this  way  back,  in  an  agony  of  perspira- 
tion, to  offer  back  with  both  hands  the  red-covered 
leaflet. 

"  Please  take  it  back,  please  take  it  back.  I've  read  it 
and  it  is  just  the  same  as  the  Wickedness  of  God ;  please 
take  it  back." 


TO   THE   NORTH  117 

"  Why  didn't  you  give  it  away,  or  throw  it  aside,  if  you 
feared  it  ?  "  inquired  Pang. 

"  Oh,  that  would  never  do,  all  the  evil  would  come  on 
me,"  said  the  old  fellow,  trembling.  "  Thank  you  for 
taking  it  back.  I've  lost  fifty  lee  [seventeen  miles]," 
he  gasped,  "but  never  mind  that  Oh,  I  was  so 
scared." 

"  What  is  your  name  ?  "  asked  Pang. 

"  My  name  is  Cho  Ping-wang." 

"  Where  do  you  live  ?  " 

"  I  live  in  Whang-ha,  and  we've  had  no  end  of  trouble 
there  from  the  Wickedness  of  God." 

Pang  so  kindly  explained,  and  so  considerately  dealt 
with  the  man's  fears,  that  he  was  greatly  calmed  and  took 
his  leave  in  comparative  peace. 

In  and  out  the  procession  wound  through  the  lovely 
valleys.  "  Whir "  went  a  pheasant,  humming  over  the 
hill.  It  was  the  first  announcement  that  the  birds  were 
out  at  afternoon  picking  in  the  fields,  and  Plum  unhitched 
his  gun  and  put  in  half  a  dozen  cartridges.  Fifteen 
seconds  later  buzz,  buzz  went  two  more ;  "  bang  "  went  a 
shot  after  them  and  a  stately  bird  with  red  top  and 
bronzed  shoulders  somersaulted,  white,  and  green,  and 
scarlet,  into  the  grass. 

"  Hurrah  ! "  said  the  Dragon,  while  Yap  went  scurry- 
ing into  the  brushwood  wild  with  delight.  Another  flew ; 
"  bang,"  went  a  second  shot,  and  down  came  the  bird. 
How  the  mapoos  enjoyed  it.  Here  was  a  great  sports- 
man who  could  catch  birds  on  the  wing;  his  doctrine 
must  be  true  as  well,  thought  they. 

Every  eye  was  open  now,  on  the  lookout  for  game ; 
bustards  were  sighted  off  over  the  paddy  fields,  cranes, 
herons,  but  Plum  refused. 


n8  THE   VANGUARD 

Here  was  a  crow,  good  for  medicine,  would  he  shoot 
that? 

"  What,"  asked  he,  "  eat  crow  ?  " 

"  Yes,  good  for  medicine,"  but  Plum's  only  reply  was 
a  snatch  from,  "  Are  you  there,  Moriarity  ?  " 

Now  they  had  sighted  a  flock  of  ducks  on  the  rice- 
field,  and  the  whole  procession  stopped  to  watch  Plum 
creep  along  the  ridge,  nearer  and  nearer.  Step  by  step 
he  approached,  till  the  ducks  had  been  given  warning 
and  were  on  the  alert.  Up  rose  the  flock,  all  at  once, 
and  for  an  instant  Plum  waited.  There  was  intense 
eagerness  on  the  part  of  the  procession,  even  Willis  held 
his  breath.  Then  two  rapid  shots  plunged  straight  into 
the  cloud  of  ducks  and  five  fell,  four  dead  and  one 
wounded ;  another  shot  brought  the  one  in  and  the 
Dragon's  pony  fairly  bristled  with  game. 

Such  were  some  of  the  variations  along  the  way. 
Wherever  Plum  was,  the  fun  ran  high,  and  there  was 
always  amusement.  He  kept  the  people  awake  and  their 
minds  moving,  and  so  prepared  them  more  readily  to 
hear  and  understand  the  Gospel.  How  thankful  Willis 
was  for  Plum.  Into  his  more  serious  life  had  come  this 
rollicking  beam  of  sunshine,  to  whose  kind-heartedness 
and  absurdities  there  seemed  no  end. 

In  the  evenings  there  was  a  hush  that  passed  over  the 
valleys.  Voices  could  be  heard  at  great  distance  and  the 
jingling  of  the  ponies.  This  peculiar  quiet  never  failed 
to  impress  the  soul  of  Willis,  for  to  him  all  its  light  and 
shade  were  marked  by  earnestness.  On  the  distant  hills 
there  was  the  stretch  of  pines,  and  beneath,  hidden  in  the 
valleys,  the  mud  villages  each  misted  by  a  shadow  of 
smoke,  and  the  uncertainties  of  evening.  Calls  were 
heard  here  and  there,  and  sometimes  singing,  and  stray 


TO   THE  NORTH  119 

white  coats  could  be  seen  winding  across  the  paddy 
fields. 

Night  was  falling  in  the  Far  East,  with  no  newspapers 
sold  or  read,  and  no  America  ever  heard  of.  There  was 
no  wide  world  with  its  lightning  methods  of  communi- 
cation, no  seas  across  which  steamers  ploughed,  no  Far 
Eastern  questions  to  bother,  no  Shakespeare,  no  churches, 
no  fine  horses  or  carriages,  no  spirit-wagons,  or  automo- 
biles, absolutely  nothing,  and  yet,  here  mortals  were 
living  and  dying,  here  children  were  growing  up  with 
their  little  bosoms  filled  with  love  and  hate,  believing 
that  somehow,  devils  had  to  do  with  all  this  dream  of 
theirs,  and  that  they  must  be  studied,  pampered,  fed, 
followed,  worshipped,  otherwise  life  would  be  smitten  and 
blasted,  and  end  in  woe.  The  long  line  of  pines  was  the 
home  of  the  "  mountain  lords  "  (tigers  and  spirits),  the 
quiet  of  the  evening,  the  time  when  they  came  forth — 
most  dreaded ;  the  voices  and  the  singing  not  necessarily 
sweet,  for  sometimes  it  came  from  ghosts  and  wandering 
spirits,  who  could  tell  ? 

So  the  doors  were  closed,  and  the  ring  hung  over  the 
pin,  and  into  the  tight,  suffocating  room  all  the  family 
huddled  to  sleep  and  doze  and  mumble  through  the 
dreams  of  night,  and  wait  for  the  cocks  to  crow  and  the 
morning  sunlight  to  scatter  all  the  devils. 

Into  such  a  village  went  the  procession  of  twenty 
horses  and  seventeen  men.  No  such  event  had  ever 
happened  since  Yee-tan,  father  of  kings,  had  ridden  his 
charger  and  "  drunk  water  from  the  gourd."  Twenty 
horses  and  seventeen  men  !  and  two  of  them  great  per- 
sonages from  beyond  the  sea,  with  books  and  vast 
accoutrement. 

When  the  evening  meal  was  over,  Plum  unstrapped 


120  THE  VANGUARD 

his  baby  organ,  and  seated  on  a  wooden  pillow  in  the 
balcony  before  the  guest-room,  struck  up  a  trans- 
lation of, 

«  God  loved  the  world  of  sinners  lost, 

And  ruined  by  the  fall ; 
Salvation  full  at  highest  cost, 
He  offers  free  to  all." 

Immediately  the  street  was  crowded.  Such  an  enter- 
tainment as  this  given  by  Plum  had  never  been  heard 
before,  and  the  words  could  be  understood,  too. 

What  kind  of  beast  was  in  the  box  that  he  could  bring 
noises  like  that  out  of  it  ? 

"  God  loved  the  world  ?  "  "  What  does  that  mean  ?  " 
"  Who  knows  what  God  does  ?  "  "  We  don't  know  what 
the  noise  he  is  making  means,  but  it  is  all  about  God," 
and  so  words  were  flung  at  each  other,  with  comments. 

When  the  music  ceased,  Willis  stepped  forward  and 
gave  a  short,  clear,  pointed,  intelligent  explanation  of 
Christian  faith,  set  with  a  background  of  Korean  homely 
life,  so  that  through  the  crowd  there  went  signs  of  ap- 
proval, "  That's  so  !  "  "  True  enough  !  "  "  Good  !  "  and 
the  women,  who  crowded  into  the  side  room,  repeated 
the  words  with  audible  emphasis.  In  his  discourse,  there 
was  such  evident  familiarity  with  their  own  mode  of  life, 
their  fears,  their  forms  of  worship,  their  hopelessness,  their 
fatalism,  and  such  a  clear  ringing  mark  of  truth  and  as- 
surance, when  he  directed  them  away  from  these  things, 
that  many  impetuous  ones,  among  the  women  especially, 
said,  "  That's  for  me."  "  I  shall  join  it." 

It  made  its  mark,  that  short  talk  that  evening.  Till  a 
late  hour  of  the  night  Pang  and  Kim  were  besieged  by 
urgent  inquirers,  who  wished  to  know.  Again  there 


TO  THE  NORTH  121 

others,  who  sat  or  dozed  the  livelong  night,  in  hope 
that  the  pastor  would  again  bring  noises  out  of  his 
"  spirit-box." 

Off  once  more  they  started  on  their  journey,  rumor 
circulating  everywhere.  In  such  a  queer  old  land  what 
could  not  rumor  make  of  twenty  horses  and  seventeen 
men.  Whole  armies  were  on  the  march.  Kings  of 
mightiest  Western  Empires  had  come  a  crusading.  It 
was  a  matter  of  the  Doctrine ;  not  the  Wickedness  of  God, 
but  the  other.  Prepare  yourselves  all  along  the  way,  oh 
ye  people,  and  look  humble.  There  was  extra  boiling 
and  frying  in  official  Yamens  (government  offices)  in  view 
of  it  Even  the  old  wooden  gods  planted  by  the  way- 
side felt  the  shock. 

The  procession  had  passed  a  deep  wood,  and  here 
stood  the  "  General  of  Hell,"  on  one  side  of  the  road,  and 
his  wife  on  the  other.  They  had  been  blocked  out  of 
hard  wood,  with  fierce  grinning  teeth  and  awful  eyes,  and 
had  stood  guarding  the  way  for  many  a  year,  till  their 
inner  being  was  decayed  somewhat,  and  falling  into  ruin. 
The  old  general  still  wore  his  whiskers,  frowzy  tufts  on 
each  side,  and  one  on  the  chin.  With  demoniacal  grin 
he  guarded  the  roadway  and  kept  all  the  goblins  from 
passing.  It  is  an  old  and  to  these  people  a  very  sacred 
custom,  these  gods  by  the  wayside,  let  them  be  treated 
considerately.  The  Dragon  was  on  ahead,  having  a  walk 
in  the  morning,  he  and  Yap,  thinking  out  his  views  of 
life,  when  suddenly  he  was  confronted  by  the  "  General 
ofHelL" 

"  You  great  fool  thing,"  said  the  Dragon, "  you  are 
no  general,"  and  with  that  he  threw  a  stone,  that  struck 
squarely  and  made  a  deep  pit  under  the  general's  left  eye. 
•*  Whiskers  too,  have  you  ?  "  said  the  Dragon.  (He  him- 


122  THE   VANGUARD 

self  deeply  longed  for  whiskers,  Oriental  ones,  pointed  on 
the  chin,  and  silky  down  the  sides.) 

"  Come  off  here,"  and  he  pulled  one  of  the  side  tufts 
till  it  let  go  its  hold  and  dropped  away. 

"  Here  you  are,  Yap,  here  is  some  fur  to  chew  on." 
He  was  in  the  act  of  further  mutilating  it,  when  Willis 
and  Plum  arrived.  He  was  not  Plum's  boy,  so  it  would 
have  been  quite  out  of  place  for  Plum  to  vent  any  views 
as  to  the  Dragon's  behavior.  Plum  knew  it,  laughed  a 
deep  laugh  inside  of  him,  and  waited  for  Willis. 

"  Look  here,"  said  Willis,  "  this  will  never  do,  Dragon ; 
leave  these  alone." 

"  But  it  belong  devil,"  said  the  Dragon. 

«  Even  so,"  said  Willis,  "  we  must  not  touch  them," 
in  a  very  emphatic  tone. 

The  Dragon  subsided,  saying  half  to  himself,  "  Mas- 
ter no  savez  Korean  man.  Just  preach,  preach,  preach, 
and  leave  all  the  devils.  More  better  smash  all  devil,  and 
say, '  Believe  now  ! '  I  think  every  man  say, «  Yea-a.' " 

Willis  shook  his  head  and  explained  the  nature  of  the 
Doctrine  over  once  more  to  get  some  light  into  the 
Dragon's  soul. 

"  It  is  not  a  smashing  crusade,"  said  he,  "  but  a  kindly 
invitation." 

The  Dragon  could  not  see  it  at  all,  to  him  the  better 
way  would  be  to  go  through  the  north,  upset  all  these 
"  generals,"  and  their  wives  as  well,  blow  a  trumpet  ahead 
of  the  procession,  tear  down  the  pictures  from  the  moun- 
tain shrines,  let  no  man  smoke  within  a  hundred  yards 
of  his  master,  and  use  low  talk  to  all  the  people. 

Yap  cleared  his  teeth  of  the  whiskers  that  he  had  got 
tangled  into,  and  the  procession  moved  on.  Plum 
marked  with  amusement  the  look  of  dissatisfaction  that 


TO  THE  NORTH  123 

brooded  over  the  Dragon.  The  latter  was  quite  outdone 
with  the  whole  effort.  His  heart  and  common  sense  had 
been  put  at  Willis'  service  and  here  was  this  blind  foolish 
way  of  going  at  the  Koreans.  He  expressed  himself 
later  in  the  day  to  an  old  woman,  who  was  offering  a 
dish  of  cooked  rice  and  praying  through  her  shrivelled 
lips. 

"  Grandmother  !  "  said  the  Dragon,  "  grandmother  ! 
If  you  pray  to  that  stick  you'll  go  to  the  Yellow 
Hell." 

She  cast  a  frightened  glance  on  the  youth,  who  dared 
so  blaspheme,  and  then  went  on  with  her  prayers. 

Into  the  market  town  of  Changsung  swept  the  caravan, 
all  the  ponies  at  high  speed,  and  the  bells  a-jingling. 
Runners  from  the  Yamen  had  dropped  in  ahead  and 
were  clearing  the  streets.  "  He-e-e-e  !  "  they  piped  high 
and  shrill,  and  then  suddenly  changed  it  to  a  deep 
"  Ya-a-a-a  !  "  down  in  their  throats.  All  intended  to  do 
honor  to  the  visitors,  these  Western  men  from  Ping-yang, 
who  had  befriended  Korea,  in  some  way  or  other,  during 
the  war.  There  were  innumerable  white  coated  people 
everywhere,  and  women  as  well  who  came  boldly  out  to 
see. 

"  Look  at  his  red  face  !  "  said  they,  pointing  to  Plum, 
"  and  the  tall  man  ?  " 

"  Oh,  that's  Willis  of  Ping-yang." 

"  What  are  they  after  ?  " 

"  The  Doctrine,  the  Doctrine." 

It  took  the  largest  inn  in  town  to  stow  away  the  horses 
and  men,  and  for  a  time  Willis  and  Plum  were  under  a 
perfect  avalanche  of  sightseers.  It  was  the  first  visit  of 
white  men,  these  strange  fabulous  beings,  whose  char- 
acteristics rumor  had  jostled  over  the  land.  Old  men,  and 


124  THE   VANGUARD 

those  in  charge  of  things,  pushed  in  first,  and  took  places 
of  honor  and  the  long  list  of  questions  began. 

"  Is  there  a  land  where  they  have  only  one  eye,  and 
that  in  the  middle  of  the  forehead  ?  " 

"  Hush  !  "  says  some  one  in  the  crowd, "  don't  ask  that 
kind  of  question." 

Another  old  sojourner  with  very  heavy  breath,  asked, 
"  Are  your  parents  alive  ?  " 

Then  a  third  inquired  how  old  Plum  was  to  have  lost 
all  his  hair  except  the  tufts.  Plum  replied  by  wrinkling 
his  brow  and  making  the  top  of  his  head  slide  up  and 
down  to  the  amusement  of  the  boys. 

It  was  a  long  interrogation  by  an  idle  good-for-nothing 
crowd,  but  that  is  a  part  of  the  missionary's  undertaking, 
and  the  unruffled  patience  with  which  Willis  always  went 
through  these  interviews,  explained,  in  some  measure,  the 
influence  of  the  man.  Plum  was  good  too,  but  his  fun 
bubbled  over  and  made  the  crowd  laugh.  The  more 
serious  inquirers  had  gone  aside  with  Pang  and  Kim, 
and  were  now  deep  in  conversation.  At  the  rear  was 
the  Dragon  preparing  rice  and  corned  beef  taken  from 
Chicago  tins.  He  too  answered  questions  but  in  his  own 
way. 

There  was  no  need  of  the  baby  organ  here  to  draw 
crowds.  As  it  was,  the  intense  pressure  to  which  the 
room  was  subjected  that  evening,  brought  down  a  part 
of  the  partition  that  joined  the  sliding  door.  There  was 
a  crash  and  a  fall  of  mud  plaster,  and  dust  enough  to 
suffocate  an  army.  They  breathed  in  the  dry  bacteria  of 
the  debris  for  the  remainder  of  the  night.  Doubtless  the 
room  had  seen  its  rounds  of  typhus,  smallpox,  cholera, 
and  the  other  every-day  accompaniments  of  the  poor 
Korean  people,  and  here  were  the  germs  double-winged, 


TO  THE  NORTH  125 

and  on  the  fly.  Many  a  man  falls  before  these  dangers, 
as  in  the  case  of  Sir  James,  who  faced  all  the  germs  all 
the  time.  In  a  little  the  ranks  are  broken,  and  the  place 
thereof  knows  them  no  more. 


XVI 
DOING  THE  DOCTRINE 

IT  was  market  day.  From  first  cockcrow  the  coun- 
try folk  came  streaming  in,  so  that  by  the  early 
streak  of  dawn  the  town  was  filled  with  thousands 
of  people.  How  quiet  they  seemed  and  serious,  bent 
solely  on  the  business  of  the  day,  with  their  loads  of 
beans,  rice,  hides,  tobacco,  and  charcoal,  roped  on  to 
huge  stolid  bulls.  Later  on  as  drink  passed  freely  every 
man's  tongue  began  to  move,  and  by  afternoon  there 
was  a  babel  indescribable.  Willis  and  Plum  knew  well 
that  it  was  no  use  to  preach  to  drunken  men,  and  so  took 
advantage  of  the  early  hours  of  the  morning,  setting  each 
man  at  something,  Pang  to  preach,  and  Kim  to  sell 
books.  The  Dragon  and  Yap  guarded  the  supplies  left 
at  home,  for  there  are  no  end  of  thieves  on  market-day, 
and  the  Dragon  kept  excellent  watch. 

"  Come  now  all  you  good  people,"  says  Pang,  "  listen 
to  me  for  a  little.  It's  cold  this  market  morning,  and 
you  folk  have  walked  a  long  way ;  you'll  be  tired  of  talk 
but " 

"  No,  no !  go  on.    We'll  listen." 

"  I  was  a  Tong-hak,  you  know,  my  name  is  Pang, 
believed  in  pyuk-gok  and  that  kind  of  thing,  and  prayed 
to  the  gods,  and  moved  my  mother's  grave  here  and 
there,  and  cut  my  hand  and  fed  my  father  on  the  blood 
before  he  died." 

"  Ah !  ha ! "  said  the  crowd,  "  noble  deed ! " 
126 


DOING   THE   DOCTRINE       127 

"  Yes,  let  out  my  blood  and  did  all  I  could  to  find  the 
Way,  but  I  couldn't  find  it.  If  you'd  have  asked  me 
then,  '  Have  you  found  the  Way  ? '  I  should  have  said, 
'  No,  I've  not  found  it,  not  a  bit  of  it.'  Now  you  good 
friends  are  looking  for  the  Way,  aren't  you  ?  Every 
man  of  you  trying  to  find  it.  The  Way  is  more  to  you 
than  the  ox  you've  got,  or  the  load  you  are  trying  to 
sell,  own  up,  friends." 

"  Is  there  lots  to  eat  in  the  Way  ?  "  inquired  a  gaunt- 
looking  heathen. 

"  Plenty,"  says  Pang,  "  good  white  rice,  and  cabbage 
pickle,  red  peppers  thrown  in  and  fish  too." 

With  this  introduction  Pang  began  the  real  work  of 
the  day,  Willis  standing  by  him.  Later  on,  which  was 
greatly  to  the  crowd's  delight,  he  himself  did  the  speak- 
ing. Here  was  this  tall  Westerner  with  light  hair,  away 
off  here  in  the  black  haired  lands.  How  different  his 
appearance,  but  his  words  were  true,  and  they  were 
pleasant  to  the  ear.  It  was  all  mixed  up  somehow  about 
Jesus.  You  had  to  do  it  and  they  did  not  quite  under- 
stand how,  but  the  general  impression  was  good,  it  was 
not  the  same  as  the  Wickedness  of  God. 

Kim  and  Plum  were  getting  rid  of  great  quantities  of 
books.  These  they  sold  for  a  few  cash  a  piece,  not 
enough  to  pay  cost  but  just  enough  to  keep  market  peo- 
ple from  destroying  them.  There  was  great  excitement, 
people  almost  trampled  each  other.  Each  time  a  book 
was  handed  over  explanations  were  given.  Such  a 
literary  turn  had  never  been  known  to  any  market  in 
the  far  north ;  men  forgot  to  drink  in  their  curiosity  over 
the  books.  Excited  crowds  in  stampede  overturned  an 
old  woman's  table  of  pan-cakes  and  all  her  pot  of  batter. 
Away  it  went  into  the  mud  and  great  was  the  loss. 


128  THE   VANGUARD 

Plum  searched  her  out,  paid  her  full  price  for  cakes  and 
batter,  and  the  people  wondered  to  see  how  many  cash 
taken  in  for  books  passed  over  to  the  old  woman. 

"  They  are  not  after  money  these  strangers  evidently." 
She  went  home  with  a  marvellous  tale  to  tell,  and  a  red 
book  tied  under  her  waist-band. 

Willis  and  his  party  moved  out  of  Changsung,  away 
towards  the  eastern  mountains,  that  rise  high  up  and  divide 
the  land.  Most  of  the  villages  for  this  day's  journey  had 
their  supply  of  books  bought  at  the  market  and  there 
were  innumerable  questions  to  be  asked  regarding  them, 
showing  that  they  had  been  read.  Never  was  a  royal 
progress  better  advertised  than  this  procession.  White 
coated  groups  stood  out  on  sidings  and  hill  points,  where 
the  view  was  clear,  counted  the  horses,  and  waved  their 
fans  to  the  passers-by.  Women  screamed  and  ran  to  the 
nearest  corner  round  which  they  peeked.  No  man 
dreamed  however  that  a  new  era  had  dawned  with  this 
procession,  and  that  old  things  had  passed  away. 

In  one  of  the  mountain  regions  the  party  turned  into 
a  Buddhist  monastery  to  spend  Sunday.  They  were 
wearied  with  the  crowds,  and  desired  a  day  of  rest  in  the 
grateful  shadow  of  the  pines,  where  the  wind  murmured, 
and  there  was  the  soft  tinkling  of  the  temple  bells.  The 
surroundings  of  the  Buddha  are  always  so  refreshing  to 
the  traveller,  with  their  gurgling  streams,  high  rocks,  and 
echoing  solitudes ;  but  the  real  kernel  is  not  always 
sweet  to  the  taste,  for  however  beautiful  the  deer  may 
seem,  who  are  feeding  on  the  other  side  over  in  the 
valley,  the  two  priests  standing  by  are  unwashed  and 
smell  of  old  lacquer. 

Willis  and  Plum  with  Pang,  Kim,  and  the  Dragon 
were  given  a  wide  room  to  sleep  in  that  had  many 


DOING   THE  DOCTRINE       129 

pictures  pasted  up,  and  on  one  side  a  gilded  image  of 
Kwan-say-oom  Buddha.  The  floor  had  been  papered 
some  time  during  a  past  generation  with  thick  parchment 
paper,  but  the  many  treadings  of  the  worshippers  had 
worn  it  smooth  as  a  skating  rink,  and  cracked  it  here 
and  there.  After  being  well  heated  by  the  snapping 
pine- wood  under  the  rice  pot,  it  gave  forth  that  peculiar 
odor  which  makes  the  Englishman's  head  ache,  but  puts 
the  Asiatic  sweetly  to  sleep. 

It  seemed  but  an  instant  till  the  bells  and  gongs  of  the 
monastery  awoke  the  sleepers,  and  the  hum  of  men  at 
prayer  set  in  motion  the  dreamy  doings  of  the  day.  The 
sun  slanted  through  the  pines,  and  all  the  breathings  of 
the  morning  filled  the  world  about  them.  They  had  slept 
badly,  but  here  was  Nature,  fresh  as  when  the  world  was 
made,  reminding  them  that  God's  hand  never  grows  old 
or  His  finger  touches  unsteady.  The  day  would  be  rest- 
ful, and  gradually  the  misery  of  the  night  would  be  for- 
gotten. There  were  just  the  priests  and  the  old  woman 
who  kept  the  side  temple  called  the  Way  of  Holiness. 
Far  removed  were  the  market  squares  and  the  trampling 
mobs.  These  they  should  face  on  the  morrow  ;  to-day 
it  was  rest  and  quiet  with  no  voice  or  unseemly  uproar. 
Yap  slept  on  the  stoop  of  the  temple  and  bit  at  the  flies. 
The  old  woman,  who  was  big,  and  rather  coarse,  and  who 
gave  you  the  impression  that  she  might  have  been  noisy 
before  she  came  into  touch  with  the  Way  of  Holiness, 
looked  askance  at  Yap.  Dogs  are  not  allowed  to  ap- 
proach the  Buddha,  It  was  a  holy  day  and  there  was 
sacrifice  to  be  offered  to  Ameeda  the  great  god  over 
in  the  temple.  The  old  beldame  was  busy  up  to  the 
elbows  at  all  the  good  things,  so  careful  lest  any  refuse  or 
impurity  should  get  into  the  fire,  for  Buddha  comes  down 


130  THE  VANGUARD 

the  chimney  seven  times  a  day  to  inspect  the  cooking 
and  see  to  other  business  that  he  has  upon  the  wheel. 

The  tables  had  been  prepared,  and  were  now  to  be  car- 
ried in,  one  at  a  time,  and  placed  before  the  altar ;  two 
were  safely  put  in  order,  and  she  was  coming  in  with  the 
third  when,  to  her  horror,  there  was  Yap  helping  himself 
from  table  number  one.  The  old  woman  dropped  her 
load  unceremoniously,  and  rushed  back  into  the  kitchen 
where  her  son,  a  priest,  a  man  of  thirty-five,  was  helping 
her. 

She  began  her  story  in  tightly  suppressed  notes,  but 
gradually  getting  louder.  Plum  and  the  Dragon  heard 
this  note  of  warning,  and  hurried  over  to  the  kitchen. 
The  old  woman's  face  had  a  fierce  set  expression  and  her 
eyes,  wild-looking,  gazed  straight  into  vacancy,  her  teeth 
ground,  and  her  hands  worked  convulsively. 

"  Ya-a-a !  "  shouted  she,  snorting  between  times.  "  Vile 
small-tailed  dog !  Ya-a-a !  Insulted  Ameeda !  Om- 
charee-chooree-choonjay  !  !  !  "  and  she  rushed  out  into  the 
court,  her  son  after,  trying  to  hold  her,  but  she  flung  him 
aside  with  the  strength  of  a  mad  man,  till  his  head  cracked 
against  the  wall.  Then  she  closed  her  jaws  like  a  vise, 
set  all  her  muscles,  screamed,  bounced  into  the  air, 
foamed  at  the  mouth,  a  frantic  picture  of  demoniacal 
possession. 

"  Look,"  said  Plum,  "  I  never  saw  the  like  of  that  be- 
fore." 

"  Plenty  of  that  in  Korea,"  said  the  Dragon ;  "  that's 
what  you  call  letting  go  your  body.  She'll  finish  pretty 
soon." 

The  Dragon's  words  were  true.  Willis,  Pang,  and 
Kim  arrived  just  as  she  let  off  the  final  explosion.  She 
caught  a  huge  tile  from  the  wall,  lifted  it  with  both  hands 


DOING   THE   DOCTRINE       131 

and  brought  it  down  on  her  head  "  crack,"  shivering  the 
tfle  to  pieces,  then  she  bounced  up  into  the  air  once  more 
and  fell  rigid  and  unconscious.  Her  son  dragged  her 
into  the  kitchen  and  threw  her  on  to  a  pile  of  straw. 
Yap  was  tied  up  and  a  deathly  calm  fell  upon  the  mon- 
astery. 

Next  morning  as  they  were  about  to  leave,  the  old 
dame  came  to  Willis  and  told  him  her  story,  that  she  was 
so  sore  all  over,  her  legs  and  arms  and  her  heart  as  welL 
Could  he  explain  it,  or  give  her  some  medicine  ?  He 
had  some  tablets  that  he  thought  would  be  the  thing. 
He  told  her,  too,  how  sorry  he  felt  about  Yap's  doings, 
but  she  would  hear  nothing  of  it,  she  had  saved  the  god's 
"  face "  and  bygones  were  bygones.  They  made  her 
some  presents,  gave  her  a  red  book,  and  saw  her  once 
more  quietly  in  possession  of  the  Way  of  Holiness.  Her 
name  was  Blue  Rock's  Mother. 


XVII 

THE  SHINS  AND  FIREBLOWER 

DURING  their  stay  in  an  official  and  market 
centre,  Plum  made  the  acquaintance  of  a  hard- 
faced  woman  who  was  selling  combs. 

"  Are  you  one  of  the  Doctrine  folk  ?  "  asked  she. 

"  Right  you  are,  sister,"  said  Plum.  "  Try  this  red 
book  and  see  what  you  think  of  it."  He  was  respectful, 
bought  one  of  her  combs,  in  his  free  off-hand  way,  and 
she  liked  him.  A  low  woman  herself,  who  used  to  sell 
drink,  it  made  no  difference  if  she  talked  to  men  or 
strangers,  so  she  took  the  red  book  and  hid  it  away 
somewhere  in  her  girdle  wrap. 

Later  in  the  day  her  husband,  unbeknown  to  her,  amid 
the  excitement  about  the  strangers,  called,  half  drunk, 
and  made  inquiry  of  Plum.  He  was  a  large-headed  man, 
with  round  glossy  eyes,  full  of  jokes  and  nonsense,  and 
Plum,  who  understood  that  phase  of  native  character  per- 
fectly, was  more  than  his  match. 

"  Give  me  the  sacred  Book  itself,"  said  Shin.  "  I  want 
none  of  these  introductory  pamphlets ;  my  mind  is  active 
and  craves  the  real  thing." 

"  Here  you  are,"  said  Plum,  and  he  gave  him  a  Gospel 
of  Mark  while,  unseen  by  the  eye,  an  inner  prayer  went 
up  for  a  blessing  on  the  man. 

Shin  took  the  book  home  and  hid  it  from  his  wife ; 
she  had  her  red  book,  that  she  hid  from  her  husband. 

Shin's  was  a  noted  home ;  he  had  caught  a  Tartar  for  a 
13* 


THE  SHINS  AND  FIREBLOWER  133 

wife,  and  she  a  professional  gambler  and  fighter  for  a 
husband,  and  they  each  feared  the  other,  and  were  both 
savage  and  unhappy,  hence  their  longing  for  some  sort 
of  doctrine. 

"  What  are  these  foreign  barbarians  doing  in  town  ?  " 
asked  Shin. 

"  Don't  ask  me,"  said  his  wife ;  "  it's  the  Wickedness  of 
God,  I  reckon,"  meanwhile  she  had  been  looking  at  her 
book,  and  so  had  he.  He  returned  his  next  day  saying, 
"  I've  read  it  through,  have  you  anything  else  a  little 
more  interesting  ?  " 

"  Didn't  you  like  it  ?  "  asked  Plum. 

"  Oh,  it's  full  of  people  walking  on  the  water,  and  all 
that  kind  of  thing.  We  have  that  in  Korean  books  too. 
I'd  like  something  else  that  goes  into  the  Doctrine." 

"  Listen,  Shin ! "  says  Plum, "  you  can't  find  it  in  a 
thousand  years  in  that  way.  Take  the  little  book  back, 
put  away  wickedness  from  your  heart  and  pray  God  to 
show  you  the  meaning.  Read  it  again  and  come  and  see 
me." 

His  wife  came  later  looking  for  Plum.  "  The  red-faced 
foreigner,"  she  said,  "  whose  face  and  hands  won't  keep 
still." 

Plum  was  rejoiced,  here  was  his  comb  woman  come  to 
find  him.  He  gave  her  a  Gospel  of  Mark.  Said  he,  "  A 
big  man  with  a  glossy  eye  and  very  little  topknot  called 
Shin,  took  one  of  these  yesterday,  but  he  didn't  under- 
stand how,  so  I  sent  him  home  with  it  again." 

"  Shin  ?  "  she  asked,  startled. 

"  Yes,  a  rough  man,  with  a  bull  voice." 

"  Oh,"  she  said, "  oh,  I  don't  know  him.  How  do  you 
do  it  ?  " 

"  Do  it  ?    Your  inside  eyes  must  look  away  up  to 


134  THE  VANGUARD 

heaven  while  you  read  the  book,  and  then  you  will  see 
wonderful  things,  you  will,  and  your  life  will  change." 

"  I  know,  I  know,"  she  replied. 

She  read  her  book  that  night,  and  prayed,  prayed  all 
the  time,  not  for  herself.  She  had  forgotten  about  the 
comb  woman,  and  was  thinking  of  Shin,  the  noisy  hu- 
man, known  as  her  husband.  If  only  Jesus  would  cast 
the  devils  out  of  him !  Would  He  answer  a  poor  old 
hag's  prayers  who  wanted  to  serve  Him  from  now  on  ? 

There  are  many  unrecorded  steps  in  the  story,  some 
of  them  too  sacred  to  bear  touching  off  with  a  rough- 
handed  pen.  Two  human  beings,  almond-eyed,  brown- 
skinned,  devil-souled,  long  years  penned  up  together, 
unable  to  part,  unable  to  endure,  and  no  children  to  act 
as  mediators  !  So  it  was,  until  one  day,  near  when  our 
story  falls,  the  bull  voice  said  tenderly,  "  Pobay"  (my 
treasure)  "  God  is  good." 

When  Willis,  or  Plum,  or  any  other  missionary  calls 
there  to-day,  there  is  a  lively  rattle  among  the  kitchen 
dishes,  and,  shining  in  all  the  glory  of  polished  brass, 
they  come  forth,  laden  with  the  best  the  town  has  for  the 
foreign  strangers,  whom  the  old  comb  woman  now  re- 
gards as  angels  come  among  them.  Many  a  time  Shin's 
laugh  and  Plum's  echo  along  the  rafters.  The  folks  in 
town,  some  of  them,  point  the  finger  at  him  and  say, 
"  See  that  man  Shin,  he's  joined  the  Doctrine  and  doesn't 
fight  or  drink  any  more." 

Fireblower,  the  independent  missionary,  who  had 
spent  some  years  in  this  neighborhood,  and  was  now 
passing  the  market  town,  made  a  call  on  Willis  and  Plum. 
They  knew  him  of  old,  he  was  kind-hearted  but  heady, 
and  set  on  one  thing,  come  what  would,  namely,  his  own 
way.  Cross  it  and  he  would  pour  scorn  on  you,  yea, 


THE   SHINS  AND  FIREBLOWER  135 

mouthfuls  of  invective,  but  he  prayed  and  studied  his 
Bible,  and  lived  a  lonely,  self-sacrificing  kind  of  life.  A 
strange  creature  was  Fireblower  ! 

"  Thank  the  Lord  I  am  independent,"  said  he  to 
Willis.  "  No  man  can  be  led  of  the  Spirit  and  tied  to  a 
mission  board  as  you  are." 

Willis  did  not  argue  the  point,  knowing  that  it  would 
only  rouse  his  anger. 

"  How  about  your  flock  ?  "  he  inquired  instead. 

"  Flock !  I  have  just  turned  them  all  out  of  meeting, 
every  one  of  them.  Some  have  come  back  and  said  they 
were  sorry,  but  I  shall  hold  the  law  over  them  for  a 
while." 

"  What  was  the  trouble  ?  " 

"  It  was  this,  they  had  come  to  church,  but  in  making 
their  offering  they  had  given  only  a  twentieth,  some  of  them 
a  fiftieth  of  their  income,  and,"  added  Fireblower,  "  no 
man  is  a  Christian  unless  he  gives  a  tenth  at  least,  so  I 
turned  them  all  out  and  locked  the  door." 

"  Why  didn't  you  shoot  them  ?  "  asked  Plum,  to  whom 
Willis  gave  a  sharp  look  of  rebuke. 

"  It's  all  very  well  for  you,  Plum,  to  chip  in  with  your 
nonsense,  but  no  man  can  do  God's  work  in  that  kind  of 
way." 

Plum  gave  a  laugh,  and  then  in  his  sweet  tenor  voice 
struck  up : 

"  Night  had  fallen  on  the  city, 

And  the  streets  at  last  were  still, 

Where  the  noisy  throng,  the  day  long, 

Did  the  air  with  shoutings  fill." 

It  was  the  story  of  Paul  and  Silas,  and  it  calmed  the 
spirit  of  Fireblower,  who  loved  music.  He  turned  to 
Willis  and  said,  "  Plum  does  it  beautifully,  doesn't  he  ?  " 


XVIII 
HOME  AGAIN 

KO,  meanwhile,  had  fallen  back  on  an  old  but  hon- 
est trade  that  he  had  learned  in  better  days — 
shoemaking.  To  make  shoes  in  Korea  is  to 
dwell  in  the  lowest  dust  socially.  This  was  sweet  to  Ko 
who  from  his  first  entrance  on  his  new  life  sought  a  hum- 
ble place. 

"  I  was  a  thief,  scoundrel,  liar,"  said  he,  "  let  me  put  in 
good  soles  and  make  honest  shoes." 

One  pair  he  made  extra  well,  double-soled,  with  two 
silken  strings  down  the  toe.  He  had  dried,  and  smoothed, 
and  pegged  them  into  such  shape  as  few  common  people 
in  Korea  wear,  and  now  they  were  finished.  He  wrapped 
them  carefully  in  coarse  paper,  slipped  his  New  Testa- 
ment into  his  canvas  pocket,  and  stepped  out  and  along 
the  crowded  street,  where  he  had  once  walked  for  three 
years,  dumb,  where  he  had  fought  with  all  manner  of 
men,  where  he  had  drank  and  gambled,  where  every- 
body knew  him.  Passers  pointed  the  finger,  and  women 
peeked  from  the  corners.  "  Ko  ! "  they  said.  "  Yonder 
is  Ko.  He  has  taken  to  Jesus  now  and  turned  good. 
He  hasn't  drank  for  months,  and  no  man  hears  him 
swear." 

Ko  overheard  many  of  these  remarks,  and  the  memory 
of  his  record  made  his  soul  bleed  within  him. 

He  arrived  at  the  hut  of  an  old  hat  maker,  named  Pill, 
who  had  returned  and  set  up  business.  Pill  and  he  had 
136 


HOME  AGAIN  137 

known  each  other,  but  he  had  lied  and  deceived,  and  Pill 
regarded  him  as  an  enemy. 

"  Ugh ! "  said  Pill,  "  is  it  you,  Ko  ?  I  hear  you  are 
doing  the  Doctrine,  but  I  can't  give  you  any  money,  not 
a  cash." 

"  I  want  to  see  you  a  moment,"  said  Ko,  his  old  clothes 
looking  cleaner  than  usual,  and  with  something  strange 
and  softened  about  his  manner. 

"  I  really  have  no  time,"  said  Pill,  puffing  away  at  his 
pipe. 

"  It's  this,"  said  Ko.  "  Three  years  ago  I  stole  a  pair 
of  shoes  from  your  wall-box." 

"  Ha,  ha ! "  said  Pill,  "  you  took  them,  did  you  ?  I 
suspected  you,  you  rascal,  but  the  old  woman  said  it  was 
the  other  fellow." 

"  I  took  them,"  said  Ko.  "  I'm  so  sorry,  I've  brought 
this  pair  to  pay  back  the  debt  and  ask  you  to  forgive 
me." 

"  What  sound  is  this  I  hear  ? "  ejaculated  Pill,  as  he 
looked  with  wide  eyes  on  the  shoes,  such  a  pair  as  he 
had  never  owned. 

Pill  suspected  some  trick,  and  inquired  as  to  Ko's 
motive. 

"  No  other,"  said  Ko,  "  I  have  learned  the  Doctrine." 

"  Well,  I'll  be  blowed,"  said  Pill.  "  Does  the  Doctrine 
mean  this  kind  of  thing  ?  " 

"  It  means  two  things,  one  that  hurts  you,  and  one 
that  helps  you.  You  see  all  your  sins  just  as  they  are 
and  the  thought  of  it  knifes  you  deep  down  in  your  soul ; 
and  the  other  is  you  know  God  has  forgiven  you,  and 
that  lifts  you  away  up  to  heaven.  Try  it,  Pill,  and  see," 
said  Ko,  and  he  left  the  shoes  and  was  gone. 

Pill  told  his  wife  and  they  both  agreed  that  any  influ- 


138  THE   VANGUARD 

ence  that  could  make  the  profligate  Ko  pay  back  stolen 
goods  must  have  God  behind  it,  and  was  worth  trying. 

Ko  went  back  to  his  room  and  cried,  he  knew  not 
why.  A  strange  unearthly  peace  possessed  him.  Heaven 
was  there  itself  in  the  little  room  where  he  pegged  away. 

From  now  on  Ko's  pocket  was  running  over  with 
money,  old  debts  were  paid  off  with  interest,  to  the 
amazement  of  the  creditors.  Helpless  one  among  the 
Christians  were  his  especial  care.  While  he  worked  at 
his  shoes  he  kept  his  book  open,  and  began  the  task  of 
learning  the  New  Testament,  all  about  God,  Jesus,  the 
Spirit,  all  about  the  Church,  all  about  the  individual 
Christian,  his  duties  and  privileges,  all  about  the  world 
and  the  wanderers  in  it.  He  knew  these  texts,  book, 
chapter,  verse. 

With  retentive  Oriental  memory  he  took  them  in  and 
never  let  go  his  hold.  So  often  in  later  days  he  became 
a  book  of  reference  for  the  missionary. 

"  Where  is  the  verse,  Ko,  '  If  thou  canst  believe  all 
things  are  possible '  ?  " 

"  That  will  be  Mark  nine,  twenty- three,"  said  Ko. 

"  '  And  I,  if  I  be  lifted  up  from  the  earth,  will  draw  all 
men  unto  me '  ?  " 

"  John  twelve  and  thirty-two." 

"  '  My  grace  is  sufficient  for  thee '  ?  " 

"  You  will  find  that  in  the  after  Corinthians,  twelve  and 
nine." 

" '  He  that  covereth  his  sins  shall  not  prosper '  ?  " 

"  Shall  not  prosper  ?  "  Ko  drew  a  long  breath,  hesi- 
tated and  said — "  This  is  proven  by  Ananias  and  Sapphira, 
Acts  5,  but  it  must  be  in  the  Old  Testament.  I  haven't 
seen  these  words  in  the  new." 

His  Christianity  was  everything  to  him,  his  making  of 


HOME   AGAIN  139 

boots  was  only  an  accident  by  the  way,  but  he  would 
make  it  tell  for  the  Gospel.  He  could  make  a  pair  of 
shoes  in  one  day,  valued  at  seven  yang.  The  leather, 
cowhide,  deerskin,  horsehide,  nails  and  thread  cost  thirty- 
two  yang  and  would  make  twenty  pairs.  His  food  and 
clothes  amounted  to  eighteen  yang  for  that  time.  A 
hundred  yang,  or  ten  dollars  gold  he  had  over.  How 
glorious  to  have  in  his  pocket  power  that  he  could  set 
loose  in  God's  behalf.  He  begrudged  the  cash  pieces  that 
he  used  on  himself. 

Ko's  brain  was  on  the  wheel,  as  to  how  he  could  do 
most  in  the  way  of  service.  He  thought  of  this  and  that. 
He  wrote  his  plan  out  on  a  piece  of  paper,  spread  it 
on  the  floor  and  prayed  about  it. 

At  this  time  McKechern  and  Foster  were  paying  a  call 
on  Willis,  and  Ko,  seeing  the  wise  looking  Scot,  consulted 
him  as  to  important  matters  regarding  the  faith. 

"  Get  sound  on  the  Doctrines,"  said  McKechern. 

Ko  looked  a  bit  bewildered.  "  You  mean  believe 
strongly  and  work  ?  " 

"  By  no  means.  Work  will  never  save  any  man. 
Watch  ye,  that's  a  device  o'  Satan  to  trip  ye  up,  ma  mon." 

Ko  asked  if  they  might  pray  about  it,  then  and  there. 

"  I'm  a  bit  fashed,"  said  McKechern,  "  fixin'  this  saddle. 
We  must  be  aff  ye  ken.  Did  ye  no  hae  prayers  i'  the 
morn  ?  "  This  was  all  said  in  Korean,  clear  and  distinct,  for 
McKechern  could  speak  well,  though  his  language  was  ac- 
companied by  a  broad  Scotch  accent. 

Ko  was  more  mystified  than  ever.  "  I'm  desirous," 
said  Ko,  "  to  be  of  service ;  what  would  you  advise  ?  " 

"  I  just  hae  one  word  for  ye,  ma  mon,  get  yer  mind 
straight  on  predestination  and  effectual  calling,  and  a' 
other  things  will  fa'  into  line."  McKechern  had  a  word 


140  THE  VANGUARD 

that  he  had  manufactured  for  "  effectual  calling,"  out  of 
two  Chinese  characters. 

Ko  had  never  heard  it  before  in  all  his  life,  and  asked 
"  Just  what  verse  and  what  chapter  will  that  be  in  ?  "  his 
face  eagerly  looking  at  McKechern. 

"  I  haenae  time  to  bother  wi' ye  noo,"  said  McKechern, 
and  he  added  to  himself, "  The  man's  evidently  not 
grounded  at  all.  Tut !  Tut !  I  thought  Willis  would 
hae  done  better  than  that.  He's  evidently  touched  wi' 
Plymouth  Brethrenism." 

Just  then  Foster  came  in,  and  saw  Ko,  whose  eager  face 
turned  to  meet  him. 

"  And  you  are  a  Christian,  brother  ? "  said  Foster. 
"  Peace  and  God  bless  you.  And  you  are  working  for 
Him,  are  you  ?  " 

"  In  a  very  bungling  way,"  said  Ko.  "  I  want  so  much 
to  be  of  service." 

"  Go  straight  on,  brother,  in  the  strength  of  the  Lord, 
He'll  use  you."  Then  Foster  added  in  English,  "  Mc- 
Keck,  I  like  the  looks  of  this  man,  let's  have  prayer  right 
here  with  him  now." 

"  But  we  mon  get  this  saddle  fixed  and  get  off,"  said 
McKechern  rather  gingerly. 

"  Never  mind  about  getting  off,  this  is  the  Lord's  work, 
there  is  nothing  better,"  and  greatly  to  Ko's  delight, 
Foster  prayed  then  and  there. 

Ko  never  forgot  that,  and  later  on  the  tears  over  Foster 
fell  in  view  of  a  mighty  mystery.  He  was  perplexed 
about  the  difference  of  flavor  in  these  missionaries.  He 
was  in  doubts  about  the  wise  looking  Scotchman.  He 
thought  there  was  something  wrong  with  his  faith,  and  he 
prayed  for  him,  though  he  would  never  have  told  any- 
one so. 


XDC 

PLUM'S  WEDDING 

WEDDINGS  in  Korea  are  among  the  great  af- 
fairs of  life,  exceeded  in  importance  by  funerals 
only.  Children  are  betrothed  at  birth,  and 
married  in  childhood.  They  never  meet  before  marriage, 
and  write  no  love-letters.  Their  fathers  and  mothers 
settle  the  affair  without  reference  to  the  interested  parties, 
and  the  wedding  is,  as  McKechern  would  say,  an  "  unco 
splore "  for  both  families.  The  only  one  who  sees  not, 
and  should  hear  not,  and  think  nothing  about  it,  is  the 
bride,  whose  eyes  are  sealed,  whose  cheeks  and  lips  are 
daubed  with  vermilion,  and  the  rest  of  whose  face  is 
smeared  with  pipe-clay.  "  Will  you  take  this  man  to  be 
your  wedded  husband  ?  "  is  never  asked,  and  no  sound  es- 
capes her  lips.  She  is  a  dressmaker's  dummy  for  the 
day,  hung  with  all  the  extra  embroideries  and  dress  goods 
that  can  be  begged  or  borrowed,  never  again  to  be  donned 
during  this  mortal  pilgrimage.  A  day  or  so  later,  her 
eyes  are  open  to  the  matter-of-fact  life  that  confronts  her, 
and  the  kitchen,  the  mother-in-law,  the  husband,  with 
whom  she  has  to  do  are  all  interesting,  frequently  terrible, 
but  she  takes  them  stolidly,  for  in  their  company  the 
Korean  woman  has  dragged  herself  along  through  all  the 
ages. 

The  husband  becomes  a  man  when  he  marries.     He  no 
longer  wears  his  hair  down  his  back,  as  the  Dragon  does, 
but  ties  a  knot  on  top  and  uses  low  talk  to  all  boys  such 
141 


142  THE  VANGUARD 

as  the  Dragon.  At  marriage  he  emerges  from  a  condition 
of  contempt  into  one  of  command. 

Plum  was  to  be  married.  "  But,  sakes  alive,  he  is 
twenty-eight  years  old,"  said  Grandma  Kim, "  and  his  hair 
has  all  dropped  off.  I  must  go  and  see  about  it. 

"  How  long  have  you  been  betrothed  ?  "  she  asked  Plum. 

"  Never  was  betrothed  at  all,"  says  Plum.  "  I'm  en- 
gaged." 

"  You  mean  your  parents  did  not  settle  who  you  were 
to  marry?" 

"  Well,  I  should  think  not." 

"  Then  how  did  you  bring  about  the  engagement  ? " 
asked  Grandma  Kim  deeply  interested.  (The  Dragon  was 
listening  to  the  conversation  just  outside  the  door.) 

"  How  did  I  bring  about  the  engagement  ?  Why  I 
saw  this  young  lady,  and  she  was  good,  and  beautiful,  and 
wise,  and  sweet,  and  I  said, '  Would  you,  peerless  one, 
condescend  to  come  down  and  consent  to  be  the  wife  of 
a  bundle  of  sin,  shortcoming  and  stupidity,  who  adores 
and  regards  you  as  flawless  perfection  ?  ' " 

"  Really,"  said  Grandma  Kim.  "  Did  you  ?  You  never 
could  do  that  with  a  Korean  woman,  or  you'd  spoil  her. 
Then  what  did  she  reply  ?  " 

"  She  said, '  You  silly  goose,  of  course  I'll  be  your 
wife.'  " 

Grandma  drew  a  long  breath.  "  How  old  were  you 
then  ?  " 

"  Twenty-five,"  said  Plum. 

The  ways  of  these  foreigners  were  beyond  the  compre- 
hension of  Grandma  Kim.  She  awaited  the  coming  of 
Plum's  fiancee  with  lively  interest,  and  her  surprises  were 
only  increased  when  that  young  woman  and  her  mother 
arrived  in  the  Land  of  Morning  Calm. 


PLUM'S   WEDDING  143 

Miss  Addie  could  not  speak  the  language  of  the  old 
mother,  but  her  good  heart  shone  out  through  her  face 
and  manner,  in  a  way  to  completely  win  these  far  off 
people. 

She  and  Plum  were  engaged,  how  would  they  act  ? 
The  eyes  of  womankind  were  fixed  on  them  through 
the  chinks  and  corners.  Grandma  Kim  with  arms  akimbo 
watched  them  from  the  open. 

Plum  and  Miss  Addie  walked  out  over  the  fortifications 
in  view  of  all,  he  demonstrating  and  expounding  the  mean- 
ing of  things.  Here  the  Japanese  had  rushed  in ;  there 
the  Chinese  had  rushed  out.  "  See  those  bullet  marks  on 
the  gates  and  in  the  pines." 

Plum  walked  on  rolling  clouds,  and  all  the  world  was 
happy.  The  Koreans  concluded  that  it  was  most  extra- 
ordinary, this  method,  but  all  right.  The  Dragon,  as  he 
stropped  the  carving  knife  in  the  kitchen,  told  the  loafers, 
who  were  waiting  for  bits,  that  this  was  the  way  Western 
Kings  did  their  engaging,  and  he  believed  in  it,  and  pretty 
soon  we  would  all  go  for  a  walk  in  Korea,  study  the  forti- 
fications, and  then  get  married. 

But  the  wedding !  The  church  members,  of  their  own 
free  will,  had  hung  Chinese  lanterns  all  the  way  from  the 
sky  down  to  the  earth.  Oriental  characters  decorated  the 
scene.  "  Long  may  they  live,"  "  Hail  to  the  Bamboo 
and  the  Lilly-of-the- Valley." 

What  a  night  of  jubilee !  Here  were  Pang,  and  Kim, 
and  Ko,  and  all  the  others.  Old  Wang,  the  knife-grinder, 
as  well  as  the  governor  dressed  in  his  robes  of  state,  and 
with  an  army  of  hangers-on.  There  were  lights  burning 
everywhere,  brilliantly  shining,  and  the  scene  partook  of 
the  nature  of  Aladdin's  palace.  The  ceremony  was  short, 
and  spoken  in  English.  The  bride  had  not  her  eyes 


144  THE  VANGUARD 

sealed,  not  she ;  they  were  open,  they  saw  and  were  full 
of  life  and  animation.  She  did  not  look  afraid,  or  very 
meek,  but  was  a  beautiful,  intelligent  participant  in  the 
wonders  of  the  wedding. 

The  room  to  the  left  was  just  bursting  with  its  crowd  of 
Korean  women,  who  were  charmed,  alike  with  the  peculi- 
arities of  method,  as  well  as  the  wonders  of  decoration. 
There  was  music  from  various  kinds  of  stringed  instru- 
ments and  pipes,  but  the  governor  was  uninterested  till 
the  Korean  band  struck  up.  Its  lilting  swing,  and  the 
drum  and  fifes,  that  went  with  it,  spoke  out  to  all  the  hills 
and  valleys  the  joy  of  the  occasion. 

And  then  they  had  to  eat  foods  and  sweetmeats  never 
seen  before  and  that  had  no  Korean  names. 

"  This  is  sweet  to  the  palate,"  said  the  governor,  "  and 
is  agreeable  to  the  internal  constitution  of  mankind ;  how 
is  it  made  ?  " 

The  Dragon,  who  was  serving,  said,  "  This  is  a  new 
kind  of  meat  for  kings,  made  of  rareties  brought  from 
many  lands  at  great  expense.  The  lady  of  the  evening, 
just  married,  taught  me  to  make  it.  She  is  acquainted 
with  the  ten  thousand  food-delights,  and  has  great  skill  in 
the  preparation  of  the  same." 

"  Really,"  said  the  governor,  "  she  is  most  wise.  I'll 
have  another  plate  of  that." 

Ko  was  so  happy,  he  ate  too  and  enjoyed  it.  He  bowed 
very  low  to  the  bride  and  said,  "  I  have  no  sufficient  words 
to  say  my  thanks  and  good  wishes." 

The  governor  in  speaking  his  farewell,  said,  "  Live  in 
peace.  May  the  good  time  and  all  I've  eaten  be  remem- 
bered for  ten  thousand  generations  !  " 

Plum  was  married,  and  there  was  great  delight  over 
this  family  and  these  foreign  ladies  who  had  come  to  live 


PLUM'S  WEDDING  145 

in  town.  The  Doctrine  was  a  mighty  force,  surely,  push- 
ing in  here  as  it  did  people  from  the  lands  of  the  setting 
sun. 

A  burst  of  music  and  a  prayer,  and  the  lights  closed 
down  upon  the  scene,  which  was  a  great  event  in  the  life  of 
Willis,  and  of  the  mighty  work  of  which  he  was  shortly 
to  become  a  wandering  spectator. 


XX 

THE    ENVIRONMENT 

THE  company  of  workers  grew  larger  by  addi- 
tions yearly.     A  Miss  Stillman  had  joined  the 
mission,  and  her  work  was  to  be  specially  in  be- 
half of  Korean  girls.     There  was  a  lady  physician  also. 

"  I  want  to  see  fifty  new  workers  in  the  next  five 
years,"  said  Willis,  and  his  prayers  were  offered  ac- 
cordingly. The  answers  came  home  to  him  one  by  one. 
One  worker,  more  than  all  others,  he  had  specially 
prayed  for  by  the  name  of  Eline.  Would  her  heart  not 
incline  her  to  come  out  and  join  him  here  ?  He  felt  how 
hampered  he  was  alone,  and  she  would  be  his  helpmate, 
specially  chosen.  She  had  promised  to  be  his  wife,  gladly 
so,  but  the  nightmare  of  a  land  to  which  he  invited  her, 
seemed  to  cast  a  doubt  upon  his  love.  Her  father  had 
seen  and  talked  by  chance  with  one  Mr.  Shoreland,  and  he 
had  given  such  an  account,  that  it  was  impossible  for  her 
to  go,  and  so  Willis'  prayers  for  Eline  were  answered  by 
a  proposal  on  her  part  that  they  break  off  the  engage- 
ment, unless  he  consent  to  come  home  and  live  there. 
She  was  broken-hearted,  but  her  father  forbade  her ;  surely 
if  Willis  truly  loved  her  he  would  leave  any  work  on 
earth,  however  dear,  and  show  by  that  that  his  heart  was 
true. 

The  fight  was  on.     She  was  a  true-hearted  girl  and  he 
knew  it.     The  difficulty  was  partly  due  to  a  misunder- 
standing, but  could  he  clear  it  away  ?     No,  it  was  not 
146 


THE  ENVIRONMENT          147 

a  misunderstanding  either,  Shoreland  had  done  him  no 
injury,  for  a  land  swept  by  cholera  scourges  and  typhus, 
was  no  place  for  one  brought  up  as  she.  Should  he 
answer  that  the  engagement  was  broken  ?  In  reply,  there 
came  up  before  his  mind  a  vision  of  a  tall  and  stately 
beauty,  whose  eyes  thrilled  him  and  the  sunlight  over 
that  face  dissipated  all  his  resolutions.  He  could  hear  a 
voice  with  its  sweet  finished  note  never  heard  elsewhere. 
He  could  see  her.  She  was  weeping  for  the  lad  she 
loved,  who  did  not  love  enough  in  return  to  leave  his 
cherished  calling  and  come  to  her.  There  was  a  world 
of  work  at  home,  and  she  was  a  wise  girl  and  had  many 
gifts.  Should  the  engagement  be  broken  and  he  turn 
coldly  away  from  his  vision  ?  Could  he  endure  to  speak 
eternal  farewell  to  the  light  in  the  eyes  that  looked  at 
him,  and  the  voice  whose  accents  thrilled  his  soul  ?  No, 
never  !  Then  he  must  consider  the  proposition  of  leaving 
the  field. 

There  was  a  caller  interrupted  him  at  this  moment,  an 
old  woman,  one  of  the  church  folks,  Grandma  Shin,  Mrs. 
Kim's  mother,  who  carried  in  a  napkin  a  round  earthen- 
ware jar.  Her  old  wrinkled  face  was  touched  off  with 
the  sunshine  of  heaven,  and  her  broken  voice  failed  to 
express  all  the  accents  of  her  joy.  This  was  a  pot  of 
Kimtchee  she  had  brought.  It  was  a  Korean  pickle 
made  of  cabbage,  radishes,  red-pepper,  with  fish  and  dates 
interspersed.  The  odor  is  very  objectionable  to  many 
a  Westerner,  but  she  had  brought  it.  It  was  the  best  she 
had,  her  alabaster  box  of  ointment,  and  she  loved  Willis. 

"  Just  a  jar  of  Kimtchee"  she  said.  "  I'm  ashamed  to 
offer  it,  but  the  moksa  has  filled  my  poor  life  so  full  of 
happiness,  that  nothing  would  do  but  I  fix  up  this  jar  and 
come." 


148  THE   VANGUARD 

Willis  thanked  her,  but  she  said,  "  Oh,  don't  thank  me. 
I  had  a  dream  last  night,  such  a  wonderful  dream.  I 
must  tell  you.  You  know  I'm  old,  getting  up  to  seventy, 
and  must  go  soon.  Well  I  dreamed  that  I  died  and 
it  was  not  painful  but  just  the  softest  kind  of  sleep,  and  I 
went  away  to  Heaven.  It  was  a  beautiful  land.  Think 
of  it,  an  old  rag  like  me,"  and  she  wiped  her  eyes  with 
the  end  of  her  girdle  string,  "  seeing  such  a  sight.  He 
was  there,  yes,  and  He  welcomed  me  till  my  soul  ran 
over  with  joy.  There  was  a  great  company  all  about 
Him.  I  saw  this  one  and  that,  and  Sir  James,  I  could  see 
him  so  plain.  Then  I  awoke  and  I  was  sorry  to  leave 
Heaven,  but  I  said  to  myself  I'll  fix  up  a  jar  of  Kimtchee 
and  go  tell  the  moksa." 

What  had  they  in  common,  this  lithe,  keen-eyed  for- 
eigner, loved  by  the  Western  girl  over  the  sea;  how 
could  he  find  for  a  moment  any  joy  in  the  company  of 
an  old  withered  woman,  who  had  been  a  heathen  and 
had  bowed  down  to  stocks  and  rags  ?  Why  should  his 
heart  thrill  with  thankfulness,  as  he  looked  into  her  yel- 
low face  and;  almond  eyes?  Why  should  her  toothless 
accents  about  heaven  lift  him  up  with  joy  ? 

She  bundled  out  of  the  gateway  speaking  her  blessings 
on  the  Dragon.  Again  the  voice  came  asking,  "  Will 
you  give  up  the  field  ?  "  "  No,  never  !  God  must  de- 
cide it,  it  is  too  hard  for  me."  In  the  eternal  quiet,  all 
alone,  Willis  prayed  away  his  burden.  He  saw  visions  of 
lost  multitudes  gathering  about  him  asking  the  Way. 
They  were  dark-faced  and  dense  in  their  ignorance. 
Their  tongues  spoke  a  strange  unheard-of  language,  but 
he  spoke  it  too,  and  their  faces  brightened  as  he  talked 
to  them.  He  saw  many  of  them  jubilant,  telling  others 
also  and  a  great  procession  gathering  home  to  the  Beau- 


THE  ENVIRONMENT          149 

tiful  Land.  He  could  not  decide,  it  was  too  hard,  he 
would  just  press  on  and  work. 

As  the  work  advanced  the  needs  increased.  Willis 
specially  felt  the  need  of  a  book  shop,  that  could  serve  as 
a  northern  agency  for  the  literature  required.  He  had  no 
appropriation  and  needed  two  hundred  yen  (Japanese 
dollars)  to  set  it  on  its  feet,  then  it  would  go  of  itself  and 
pay  expenses.  He  made  this  need  a  part  of  his  daily 
prayer,  and  never  for  a  moment  let  himself  forget  the 
real  source  of  supply.  But  his  prayers  were  hindered  of 
late  and  seemed  unanswered  until  he  decided  to  stay  by 
the  work  even  at  the  loss  of  the  sweet  faced  worker 
across  the  sea.  Then  there  came  a  sense  of  rest  and  how 
easy  it  was  to  pray,  there  were  no  shadows  that  inter- 
vened, and  he  was  sure  of  an  answer.  He  prayed  for  two 
hundred  yen  for  the  book-house.  No  one  knew  of  this 
special  need  or  the  church  at  home  would  have  gladly 
supplied  it,  but  its  regular  appropriations  were  set  apart 
for  other  things,  and  so  he  prayed  for  the  two  hundred 
yen  for  a  book-house,  and  expected  to  get  it. 

A  day  or  two  later  there  came  a  letter  addressed  in  an 
ignorant  rambling  hand,  but  the  address  was  his  and  he 
tore  it  open.  The  first  thing  he  saw  was  a  note  drawn 
in  his  favor  for  two  hundred  yen  on  the  Hongkong 
and  Shanghai  Bank.  He  read  the  letter. 

«  H.  L.  WILLIS, 
"  DEAR  SIR  : 

"  I  have  heard  from  the  American  minister  in 
Korea  how  you  and  your  people  stood  by  and  helped 
my  poor  old  father  when  he  had  the  smallpox  and  died.  I 
ain't  any  Christian  myself,  but  it  was  a  Christian  act  that 
you  did,  and  I  want  to  thank  you.  Here  is  two  hundred 


150  THE  VANGUARD 

yen   that  I  must  send  for  I  feel  like  it.     It's  not  to  pay 
you,  but  for  your  work  and  those  Koreans  who  were  so 
good  to  an  old  man  when  he  was  down. 
"  Yours  truly, 

"JOHN  RAKES,  JR." 

Willis  put  this  money  into  the  book-room  and  sent  their 
thanks  to  the  giver. 

Mighty  influences  were  at  work  under  which  the  great 
northland  was  heaving.  The  all  powerful  Westerner 
was  here,  and  there  was  no  withstanding  his  momentum. 
Had  the  foreigners  pulled  together,  truly  there  had  been 
no  withstanding,  but  their  influences  were  often  in  conflict 
or  at  cross  purposes. 

There  was  Puffsnauber  now,  not  an  intelligent  man,  or 
one  to  reckon  with  in  home  conditions,  but  here  in  this 
ignorant  land,  he  was  a  Westerner  and  what  he  did  was 
interpreted  as  "  Western  custom."  He  had  his  influence 
and  he  had  no  use  for  missionary  work. 

"  Vhy  not  leave  dese  people  alone  ?  "  said  he.  "  Dey 
vas  more  better  as  us,  all  the  time  you  breach  und  bray." 
He  said  to  his  kitchen  boy,  "Boy,  if  you  go  to  dat 
meetin'-house  I  vill  kick  you  out." 

"  Yea-a-a !  "  answered  the  boy,  which  might  mean  any- 
thing. 

"  Venn  you  haf  dat  religion,  you  no  can  drinck,  no 
can  schmoke,  no  can  laft,  no  can  have  any  kind  o'  dings." 
Every  little  counts,  and  Puffsnauber  counted. 

But  now,  Puffsnauber's  home  was  vacant,  though  his  in- 
fluence remained,  and  there  was  a  shadow  and  a  sad 
story  connected  therewith. 

Plum  and  his  wife  had  made  a  firm  resolve  to  try  and 
help  Puffsnauber  and  his  wife  Kozie.  They  were 


THE  ENVIRONMENT          151 

social  irregularities,  and  he  was  no  friend  of  missions,  but 
what  matter,  they  could  make  him  a  friend  if  they  truly 
tried  to  help  him,  and  the  little  Japanese  woman  so 
modest  and  faithful,  Mrs.  Plum  liked  her  from  the  first. 
They  went  to  call  on  various  pretexts,  to  see  flowers  in 
hic  garden,  etc.  Puffsnauber  invited  them  into  his  sit- 
ting-room, which  was  a  mixture  in  its  make-up  of  the  Oc- 
cident and  the  Orient.  The  knickknacks  of  her  native 
town  were  placed  here  and  there  with  evident  design  to 
please  and  catch  the  master's  eye.  On  one  wall  hung  his 
guns  and  hunting  gear,  oiled  and  shiny,  on  the  other  a 
row  of  German  pipes  to  remind  him  of  the  Fatherland. 

They  were  scarcely  seated  when  Mrs.  Puffsnauber 
glided  into  the  room  with  a  tray  of  tea,  which  she  placed 
before  them,  bowing  and  laughing  as  lower  class  Japanese 
women  do. 

"  Vhy  you  giggle  ?  "  said  he.     "  Go  avay  !  " 

Mrs.  Plum  noticed  how  the  rebuke  struck,  and  brought 
tears  to  her  eyes. 

Puffsnauber  was  nothing  if  he  was  not  commander-in- 
chief  of  her  entire  domestic  concern.  When  she  left  he 
said: 

"  She  vas  a  goot  voman,  but,"  he  added,  "  she  must 
geep  her  place." 

Mrs.  Plum  ventured  to  say, "  But,  Mr.  Puffsnauber,  you 
must  be  proud  of  her.  She  is  so  pretty  and  your  home 
is  so  well  cared  for." 

"  Oh  !  yes,"  he  says,  "  she  can  make  everydings,  pread 
und  bickle  ;  cook  die  geese  und  vild  durkeys  I  shoot,  und 
keep  mine  house  shust  like  von  palace.  I  often  say  I 
vas  live  in  von  flower  garden.  Kozie  ! "  he  shouted, 
"  come  and  show  the  lady  your  dresses  and  how  you 
make  Yapanee  tea." 


152  THE  VANGUARD 

No  woman  of  the  Orient  could  have  behaved  more 
prettily.  In  broken  English  she  explained  the  dresses, 
and  with  a  bamboo  brush  whipped  the  tea.  He  sat  by 
and  looked  large  and  coarse  and  round. 

Six  years  of  domestic  faithfulness  rolled  by,  and  fur- 
lough had  been  granted  Mr.  Puffsnauber,  and  he  would 
pay  a  visit  to  the  Fatherland.  He  sold  the  bungalow  at 
the  foot  of  the  hill,  and  told  Kozie  that  their  contract  was 
up,  and  that  she  could  go  to  Japan  or  anywhere  else  she 
liked.  She  was  only  a  helpless  "  Yapanee  "  but  a  heart 
she  had  and  it  sank  within  her.  She  came  to  see  Mrs. 
Plum  and  to  tell  her  that  the  master  was  going  away  and 
would  never  come  back  to  her  any  more. 

On  the  quarter-deck  of  the  steamer  Hohenzollern,  stood 
the  portly  figure  of  Mr.  Puffsnauber,  in  magnificent  en- 
joyment of  cigar,  his  face  homeward,  where  he  was  sure 
to  be  welcomed  as  a  son  of  the  charms  and  wonders  of 
the  East.  Great  swellings  of  satisfaction  rolled  over  him. 
How  fortunate  he  was,  too,  no  wife  or  children  to  disturb 
his  going.  "  Kozie  ?  "  "  Oh  that  was  only  von  yoke. 
I  have  geep  her  all  these  years.  I  vas  very  goot  to  her." 

Over  the  gunwale  of  the  steamship  Kare  Maru,  off  the 
dismal  waterfront  of  the  city  of  Nagasaki,  a  box  is  being 
lowered  by  a  rope,  and  down  the  gangway  goes  a  soft 
footed,  dumpy  woman,  carrying  in  her  hand  a  pair  of 
wooden  shoes.  She  has  been  crying  and  her  almond 
eyes  are  red,  and  the  aspect  accompanying  her  seems  to 
say  "  forsaken  of  the  gods."  The  box  is  put  ashore  and 
the  wooden  shoes  are  pushed  on,  the  strings  gripped  by 
the  great  toe.  "  Scuff,  scuff,  scuff,"  more  and  more  faintly, 
and  Kozie  is  lost  among  the  other  scuffings  of  a  multitu- 
dinous city.  "  Only  a  joke,"  was  she,  with  her  pair  of 
wooden  shoes  ! 


THE  ENVIRONMENT          153 

All  of  this  was  known  and  talked  of  by  the  Koreans 
and  was  a  part  of  Willis'  environment. 

To  the  south  were  McKechern,  Foster,  Gilbert,  the 
ladies  of  the  mission,  and  the  mighty  influences  of  the 
capital,  the  foreign  representatives,  and  the  flags  of  all 
nations.  In  the  mind  of  the  Korean,  Great  Britain, 
United  States,  and  Germany  had  somehow  to  do  with 
independent  truth,  while  France  was  the  sponsor  and 
protector  of  the  "  Wickedness  of  God." 

The  chilling  influence  of  the  capital  was  felt  far  over 
its  suburbs,  for  there  greed,  and  sin,  and  luxury,  held  the 
hearts  of  the  multitude.  The  Christians  did  not  crowd 
the  meeting-house  so  warmly,  or  show  the  same  earnest- 
ness of  life.  They  were  sordid  in  their  tastes  and  ambi- 
tions. The  smiling  man  from  the  North  who  inquired 
for  the  meeting-house  was  answered,  "  What  meeting- 
house ?  Yonder  spire  ?  "  pointing  to  the  Roman  Cath- 
olic Cathedral. 

McKechern  held  forth  his  fiery  law  every  Sunday, 
Total  Depravity  being  one  of  his  favorite  themes,  not 
hard  to  prove  or  requiring  any  demonstration  in  a  place 
like  Seoul.  Election  was  another,  somewhat  more  dif- 
ficult to  find  a  use  for. 

This  mecca  of  the  Korean  was  among  the  problems 
that  Willis  pondered  over.  On  his  visits,  he  studied  the 
question,  and  watched  the  slow- working  church,  and  said 
to  Gilbert  and  McKechern,  "  Why  don't  you  set  these 
Christians  to  work  ?  " 

"  To  wairk  ?  "  asked  McKechern,  "  afore  they  hae  the 
call?" 

"  Let  them  warm  up  and  be  thankful,  and  the  call  will 
be  all  right" 

"  The  what  ?     Mon,  ye  are  as  unsoond  as  ye  can  be, 


154  THE  VANGUARD 

like  thae  Catholic  bodies,  dae  all  manner  o'  evil  that  guid 
may  come.  We  maun  juist  wait  till  God  gies  them  the 
call." 

Willis  preached  on  the  Living  Sacrifice  to  a  crowded 
house,  and  there  were  many  nods  and  nudges  among  the 
hearers  in  confirmation  of  what  he  said.  To  McKech- 
ern's  mind  there  were  several  of  the  leading  doctrines  a 
bit  shaky  in  Willis'  discourse,  but  he  realized  that  it  was 
"  nae  use  to  argle-bargain,  we  maun  juist  pray  for  him." 

Gilbert  saw  the  need  and  used  all  his  gifts  in  the  meet- 
ing of  it,  but  he  was  only  a  drop  in  the  bucket.  Foster's 
voice  rang  out  too,  his  theme  being,  "  Praise  and  Halle- 
lujah," till  the  highest  officers  of  state  and  the  sons  of  the 
gentry  came  to  listen ;  but  Seoul  remained  Seoul,  a 
hardened,  darkened  city. 

Off  to  the  east  were  heard  the  rumblings  of  Fireblower 
and  rumors  of  the  doings  of  Wintershine.  Their  house- 
servants  had  given  all  sorts  of  evidence  to  prove  the 
madness  of  these  foreigners.  There  were  the  six  dogs 
cuddled  and  cared  for  like  children.  They  had  been 
diseased  in  their  feet,  and  had  gone  about  with  only  a 
limited  number  of  legs  to  walk  on  till  Mrs.  Wintershine 
was  most  distracted. 

"  This  wretched  land,"  said  she,  "  is  full  of  parasites. 
To  save  my  soul  I  can't  get  these  dogs'  feet  down.  Last 
week  five  were  up  in  the  air  and  this  week  seven.  They 
will  be  walking  on  two  feet  apiece  shortly.  Boy,"  said 
she,  "  don't  you  touch  these  dogs,  don't  look  at  them. 
You  have  all  sorts  of  creatures  on  you,  keep  your  hands 
off." 

"  Yea-a-a  ! "  says  the  boy. 

She  dosed  the  dogs  and  put  them  to  bed,  talked  to 
them  and  cried  over  them.  In  winter  they  had  flannel 


THE  ENVIRONMENT          155 

and  fur  to  keep  them  warm.  The  black  and  tan  had  a 
coat  embroidered  with  red,  and  with  pockets  on  each 
side.  The  sad  fate  of  the  dachshunds  was  thought  of, 
but  never  referred  to. 

One  day  a  little  Korean  boy  had  wandered  over  the 
hill  to  the  home  of  the  Wintershines.  He  had  a  purpose 
in  it,  for  he  had  seen  that  little  black  satin  dog  with  its 
pipe-stem  legs  and  he  said,  "  I  would  like  just  once  to 
feel  that  little  dog."  He  crept  over  close  to  the  house 
where  he  could  see,  and  there  it  was  in  the  yard.  The 
distance  gradually  lessened  and  they  were  drawing  nearer, 
the  little  brown  boy  and  the  little  black  dog,  inch  by 
inch,  till  at  last,  what  bliss,  he  had  it  in  his  arms.  Such 
a  dear  little  dog,  he  hugged  it  tight,  and  it  did  not  bite 
him.  He  put  his  brown  face  down  close  to  it  and  it 
smelt  so  smooth  and  clean  and  fragrant.  He  wished  he 
had  a  dog  like  it. 

Mrs.  Wintershine  looked  out  of  the  window  and  gave 
one  wild  scream.  The  boy  dropped  the  dog  and  ran. 
The  servants  rushed  in  and  such  a  day  of  reckoning  they 
had  of  it.  Why  hadn't  they  watched  the  place  ?  They 
were  all  dismissed.  Water  with  disinfectants  was  poured 
out  with  her  chaste  hands.  Black  and  Tan  was  washed 
and  put  in  his  cradle.  Mrs.  Wintershine  herself  was 
overtaken  by  a  sinking  spell  and  went  to  bed  also. 

When  Mr.  Wintershine  came  home  there  were  no 
servants.  They  had  all  been  dismissed,  and  richly  they 
deserved  it,  seeing  their  carelessness  in  regard  to  Black 
and  Tan.  He  would  call  on  Fireblower  and  see  if  he 
could  recommend  any  one. 

"  No,"  says  Fireblower,  "  I  recommend  no  man,  but 
there  is  an  old  fellow  and  his  son  living  near  here.  He 
speaks  some  English  and  his  name  means  cotton." 


156  THE   VANGUARD 

So  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Wintershine  hired  Cotton  and  his  son, 
and  once  more  they  lived. 

For  a  time  the  Cottons  proved  a  great  success.  He 
was  very  humble  in  appearance,  and  told  in  broken  Eng- 
lish all  the  news  of  the  neighborhood,  so  that  Mrs.  Win- 
tershine enjoyed  him  exceedingly.  As  reward,  she  al- 
lowed him  the  tea  that  was  over,  and  the  scraps  from 
the  table,  so  that  he  and  his  son  grew  well-favored  and 
fat.  He  was  an  unclean  Oriental  however  and  must  not 
touch  the  dogs.  She  washed  them  with  her  own  hands, 
and  when  the  weather  was  cold  buttoned  on  their  jackets. 
She  had  given  Cotton  and  his  son  soap,  half  a  bar  apiece, 
but  their  necks  were  still  dirty,  and  their  hands  remained 
brown  as  they  used  to  be. 

"  These  Orientals  have  the  most  objectionable  cover- 
ing to  their  good-for-nothingness,"  said  she.  "  Long 
years,  without  washing,  has  ingrained  them  a  dirty  yel- 
low that  will  never  come  out.  It  makes  all  sorts  of 
crawling  things  go  down  my  back  to  look  at  them,  but 
still  one  has  to  tolerate  them." 

She  and  Wintershine  were  to  go  away  for  a  week  on 
an  excursion  into  the  country,  and  Cotton  and  his  son 
would  take  charge  of  the  home.  But  the  monastery 
where  they  stopped  had  an  unpleasant  odor,  and  there 
was  vermin,  it  was  a  disappointment,  so  she  decided  to 
take  the  dogs  and  her  husband  and  return  home  at  the 
end  of  the  fourth  day.  They  arrived  at  night  and  with 
a  latch-key  walked  in.  The  house  was  deathly  quiet  and 
there  was  no  Cotton  or  son  to  be  seen  in  the  gate  quar- 
ters. What  did  this  mean  ?  Had  they  robbed  the  place  ? 
They  struck  a  match  and  lighted  up.  Everything  seemed 
as  it  ought  to  be.  They  went  into  her  room  and  lo, 
there  were  old  Cotton  and  his  son,  who  had  been  accus- 


THE  ENVIRONMENT          157 

tomed  all  their  days  to  sleeping  on  a  stone  floor  with  a 
wooden  block  under  the  head,  reposing  blissfully  between 
her  best  sheets  and  on  her  soft  and  downy  pillows. 

Mrs.  Wintershine  was  wild.  With  a  broom-stick  she 
treated  them  to  a  midsummer  night's  dream  that  left 
marks  on  them.  Wintershine  also  caught  for  his  riding 
whip,  and  old  Cotton  cried  for  mercy.  "  I  didn't  know 
you'd  come  home  to-day,  or  I  wouldn't  have  done  it," 
said  he. 

The  Cottons  escaped  with  their  lives,  but  they  and  the 
Wintershines  are  not  on  speaking  terms. 

Mrs.  Wintershine  wrote  to  Fireblower, 

"  REVEREND  ! ! !    FIREBLOWER    (screaming    points     after 
reverend) : 

"  Those  wretches  you  recommended  have  slept  in  my 
bed  while  we  were  absent  in  the  country.  This  is  a  sam- 
ple of  your  Christianity,  and  a  good  illustration  of  the 
result  of  missionary  work. 

"  Indignantly, 

"  KATHERINE  WINTERSHINE." 

Fireblower  replied, 

"  MADAM  WINTERSHINE  : 

"  Christianity  certainly  does  look  small  and  mean  in 

the  presence  of  your  superabundant  virtues.     I  trust  the 

Cottons  may  be  benefited,  though  ever  so  little,  through 

this  slight  contact  with  the  immaculate  world  you  live  in. 

"  Believe  me,  etc.,  etc., 

"  FIREBLOWER." 


XXI 
THE  CHOLERA  SCOURGE 

IN  the  midst  of  these  conditions,  and  with  the  shad- 
ows of  twenty  centuries  about  them,  Willis  and  his 
colaborers  pressed  on.  They  stood  for  the  dawn  of 
a  better  day  and  all  that  follows  in  its  train.  They  were 
the  heralds  of  education,  intellectual  development,  and 
common  sense,  as  truly  as  they  were  preachers  of  the 
Good  News.  That  keenness  of  appreciation  in  view  of 
the  Orientals'  need  was  never  dulled.  Some  view  it  with 
consternation  at  first,  but  change  in  their  feeling  with  the 
lapse  of  time,  and  conclude  as  Puffsnauber  did,  "  They 
are  more  better  as  us." 

There  had  been  for  a  month  and  more  grim  rumors  of 
quay-jil  (cholera)  dealing  death  over  there  in  the  north 
lands  of  Manchuria.  In  Newchwang,  coffins  were  piled 
two  stories  high,  so  the  report  went,  not  empty  coffins, 
but  each  heavy  with  its  unburied  victim  of  cholera. 
These  were  stored  away  awaiting  transportation  by 
steamer,  home  to  the  place  of  their  ancestors,  so  that  the 
spirit  of  the  departed  might  rest.  From  this  city  and 
Mukden,  pilgrims  to  the  Korean  border  brought  not  only 
news,  but  also  the  germs.  Every  twenty-four  hours 
marked  the  advance  of  the  disease.  Day  before  yester- 
day it  had  crept  four  miles  nearer,  yesterday  ten.  Nearer 
and  nearer  it  kept  coming,  this  fell  something,  that  could 
not  be  seen,  and  yet  had  power  to  put  mortals  on  the 
rack  and  crumple  them  up  with  blackest,  deadliest  death 
158 


THE   CHOLERA   SCOURGE     159 

No  wonder  Koreans  abandon  hope  in  view  of  its  myste- 
rious and  awful  doings.  To  them  it  is  a  devil,  one  of 
the  most  fiendish  in  the  long  list  that  they  possess. 

Willis  had  sent  out  a  few  simple  notes  by  way  of 
warning : 

"  God  is  able,  look  to  Him.  Avoid  drinking  unboiled 
water.  Refrain  from  green  melons  with  or  without  the 
rinds  on.  Keep  your  bodies  and  houses  clean.  Don't 
take  part  in  devil-meetings."  These  slips  were  scattered 
everywhere,  Christian  and  non-Christian  read  them. 

"  Yes,  yes,"  said  the  old  governor,  "  this  is  all  very 
well  for  Americans,  but  we  must  take  other  precautions, 
we  people  of  Chosen,  or  we  will  be  decimated."  He  had 
them  cut  wooden  posts  like  the  General  of  Hell,  with 
awful  grinning  faces,  daubed  here  and  there  with  red  and 
black  paint,  moustached  and  bearded,  fit  to  scare  the 
eternal  shades.  These  were  planted  along  the  north- 
western roads,  where  the  danger  lay,  and  there  they  stood 
on  guard  to  keep  back  the  cholera.  The  people  also  dug 
ditches  across  the  way,  to  make  it  the  harder  for  the 
spirits  to  jump  over. 

Plum  came  on  an  old  fellow  fitting  up  a  water-pestle 
in  front  of  his  house,  a  very  small  one.  There  was  the 
horizontal  bar,  with  the  trough  on  one  end  and  the  ham- 
mer on  the  other,  under  which  was  a  bowl.  It  was  hung 
beneath  a  spout  of  running  water,  so  that  when  the  trough 
filled  up  went  the  hammer.  The  water  emptied  itself 
automatically  and  down  came  the  hammer  click  into  the 
bowl,  the  result  being  a  constant  click,  click,  click. 

"  What  is  your  excellency  going  to  do  with  the  toy 
water-mill  ?  "  asked  Plum. 

"  Nothing,"  said  the  old  man ;  "  just  a  way  I  have  of 
spending  the  time,  you  know." 


160  THE   VANGUARD 

"  I  see,"  said  Plum,  "  any  cholera  here  ?  " 

"  Whist,"  said  the  old  man,  and  then  he  patted  Plum 
on  the  arm  and  whispered  to  him,  "  I've  just  put  this  up 
to  keep  away  the  cholera." 

"  Indeed  !  "  said  Plum,  "  and  how  does  that  keep  it 
away  ?  " 

"  Shoo  !  gently,"  said  the  old  fellow, "  the  cholera  devil 
he  hear  the  mill  go  click,  click,  click,  'fraid,  no  come  this 
way,  run  off,"  and  the  old  man  turned  into  his  hut  satis- 
fied, full  of  faith  in  his  water-mill. 

The  next  Sunday  Plum  introduced  into  his  discourse  a 
statement  regarding  "  cholera  and  the  water-mill,"  at 
which  many  of  the  women  laughed,  and  even  the  men 
smiled  broadly. 

On  it  came  regardless  of  posts  and  water-pestles,  over 
the  mountains  and  valleys,  smiting  this  one  and  that. 
Here  it  was  a  little  child,  there  an  old  woman,  again  a 
whole  family  caught  it  and  died.  There  was  no  knowing 
the  whims  of  this  messenger  of  woe,  or  who  would  be 
called  next.  Sickness  and  frailty  had  nothing  to  do  with 
it,  weaklings  escaped  or  recovered,  while  strong  healthy 
men  went  down. 

A  newly  arrived  physician  had  joined  the  force.  He 
was  over  head  and  ears  in  work,  enthusiastic  in  his  hopes 
of  combating  the  evil.  Already  there  seemed  to  be  a 
yielding  to  a  peculiar  kind  of  treatment. 

Willis'  earnest  prayer  was  that  the  church  might  be 
steady,  and  act  as  Christians  should,  with  no  yielding  to 
the  old  habit  of  calling  in  the  sorcerer  or  eating  of  dog 
flesh. 

Over  the  way  lived  two  brothers,  one,  a  tall  handsome 
man,  who  spoke  Chinese  well,  but  who  had  contracted 
the  habit  of  smoking  opium.  His  brother,  a  shorter 


THE  CHOLERA   SCOURGE    161 

man,  with  a  pleasant  face,  had  often  listened  to  Willis 
and  desired  to  be  a  Christian,  but  he  feared  his  big 
brother  who  forbade  it.  The  younger  was  the  stronger 
of  the  two  and  seemed  in  perfect  health.  Out  over  the 
city  were  the  cries  of  "  I-go  !  I-go  !  I  have  it !  "  There 
were  many  drums  beating  to  quiet  the  dying,  and  help 
them  home  to  the  Yellow  Shades.  The  Christians  met 
daily  for  prayer,  for  the  force  of  the  storm  was  on  them. 

Asiatic  cholera  is  commonly  called  "  Rats,"  the  cramps 
in  the  legs  being  understood  to  be  these  animals  tugging 
their  way  up  through  the  veins  and  blood-vessels  to  the 
heart,  where  they  take  the  life,  and  the  victim  dies.  The 
knife  is  often  resorted  to  to  let  them  out. 

On  one  of  these  nights  in  great  haste  the  opium  smoker 
rushed  over  to  Willis,  "  Haste  you,  my  brother  is  down 
with  rat  sickness,  medicine,  medicine  !  "  He  begged  and 
implored  that  they  save  him. 

"  Have  the  rats  already  come  ?  "  asked  the  Dragon. 

"  No,"  said  Chang,"  only  the  purging  and  vomiting, 
but  in  an  hour  more  the  rats  will  be  here.  Help,  help !  " 
he  pleaded,  in  a  distracted  way. 

The  Dragon  took  the  regulation  dose  and  bounded 
across  the  road  and  into  Chang's  house. 

Young  Chang,  with  lips  blue  and  eyes  deep  sunken 
and  all  his  flesh  "  badjusso  or  fallen  from  him,"  as  the 
Dragon  said,  had  scarcely  strength  to  swallow.  It  was 
emitted  in  a  moment  and  proved  of  no  avail. 

Chang  the  elder  ordered  him  carried  out  of  the  house, 
the  Dragon  too  lent  a  hand,  and  Willis  had  to  stand  by 
and  see.  They  lowered  him  into  the  gutter  that  slug- 
gishly crawled  along  by  the  roadway,  with  its  accumu- 
lated filth  and  mire.  There  they  kept  him,  raising  his 
head  up  so  that  his  mouth  was  just  above  the  fetid  mass. 


162  THE  VANGUARD 

He  moaned  and  looked  with  glassy  eyes  but  they  held 
him  down  for  nearly  two  hours.  It  is  one  of  the  old 
ways  of  effecting  a  cure  according  to  Korean  tradition. 
He  begged  to  be  free  and  was  at  last  dragged  out,  wiped, 
and  laid  on  the  heated  stone  floor  and  there  at  last  in  the 
agony  of  cramping  he  passed  away. 

"  He  wanted  to  believe  in  Jesus,"  said  the  Dragon, 
"  and  his  brother  wouldn't  let  him.  Will  he  go  to  the 
Yellow  Hell  as  well  as  his  brother  ?  " 

But  here  Plum  rushed  in  and  interrupted  them.  There 
was  cholera  down  at  Ko's  shoeshop,  and  also  old  Mrs. 
Shin  had  it. 

Pang  brought  in  reports  of  the  disease,  showing  how 
wildly  it  was  spreading.  No  part  of  the  town  was  un- 
touched and  word  came  that  it  had  reached  the  capital. 
Out  on  the  hills  and  about  the  city  were  squads  of  men  at 
the  shovel.  Most  bodies  were  wrapped  in  old  matting, 
carried  out,  and  dumped  quickly  into  these  shallow  graves, 
while  day  and  night  witnessed  the  procession.  Death 
was  in  the  air,  not  a  quiet  sleepy  departure,  but  the  wild 
pandemonium  of  this  fell  disease.  Willis,  Plum,  his  wife, 
and  all  the  others  walked  unscathed,  likewise  most  of  the 
Christians.  On  the  tenth  night  it  was  rumored  that 
Puffsnauber  had  fallen.  He  had  just  been  back  a  month, 
he  and  his  new  Western  wife ;  but  it  turned  out  to  be  his 
servant,  the  boy  who  had  been  kicked,  and  who  used  to 
spread  evil  reports  regarding  his  master. 

"  He  ist  dead,"  said  Puffsnauber,  "  dead  as  von  door 
nail.  He  love  all  the  time  too  much  boiled  dog  und 
melons.  I  vas  say  to  him, '  you  vant  to  be  in  dies  vorld 
or  the  next  ?  '  He  shoost  grin.  Now  he  is  dead,"  and 
Puffsnauber  shrugged  his  shoulders. 

Old  Grandma  Shin  was  dead,  whose  loving  accents 


THE   CHOLERA   SCOURGE     163 

Willis  still  bears  in  memory.  She  was  buried  on  the 
hillside  near  the  grave  of  the  others,  and  was  greatly 
missed.  Her  daughter  Mrs.  Kim,  too,  was  down,  and 
here  was  a  greater  question.  It  seemed  impossible  to 
spare  her.  Should  she  go  the  whole  Church  would  be 
darkened.  From  the  day  that  her  nimble  steps  mounted 
the  hillside  to  the  old  Buddhist  temple,  till  this  hour  of 
storm  and  stress,  she  had  run  with  messages  of  mercy. 
Throughout  the  Church  she  was  known  and  loved,  and 
her  sunny  face  greeted  every  one  like  a  blessing.  The 
men  talked  freely  with  her,  and  were  encouraged  and 
helped.  Ko,  the  wanderer,  who  had  known  only 
abandoned  women,  was  so  cheered  and  strengthened  by 
her,  that  he  hurried  away  to  ask  God  to  spare  her. 
Willis  too  prized  her  dearly.  She  was  worth  more  than 
any  one  of  the  men.  Were  she  fallen  what  a  loss  ! 

He  joined  the  others  in  the  side  room  of  Kim's  hut 
that  night,  where  they  were  all  of  one  heart  and  mind, 
except  Kim  himself  who  was  dazed  and  stupefied,  as  he 
saw  his  wife  sinking.  The  agony  was  on  her  that  could 
not  be  propitiated  by  rice  or  spirit-offerings,  but  it  was 
nevertheless  true  that  God  was  in  command  and  that  the 
Bible  encouraged  them  to  pray.  Reasonable,  sensible 
remedies  they  would  use,  trusting  in  Him.  Part  of  them 
prayed  and  part  of  them  rubbed  the  sinking  patient,  and 
kept  up  life  with  blankets  and  the  kang  (fire).  Her 
finger-tips  were  blue,  and  her  form  shrunken,  and  the 
cramping  would  come  and  close  her  eyes.  There  prayed 
the  old  major  too,  most  earnestly,  while  the  tears  flowed 
down  his  face.  Would  not  God  who  touched  the  dead 
child,  and  quieted  the  sea,  put  His  hand  on  the  sufferer 
and  keep  her  eyes  from  darkening?  She  had  helped 
with  the  Doctrine,  and  they  could  not  spare  her.  "  Thou 


164  THE   VANGUARD 

knowest,"  said  the  major, "  better  than  we,  but  that's  how 
it  appears  to  my  bewildered  understanding." 

Ko  said,  "  Lord,  it's  the  same  to  Thee,  whether  she  is 
in  heaven  or  on  earth,  but  it  makes  the  difference  to  us. 
I  reckon  the  widow's  son  didn't  count  for  as  much,  or 
Peter's  wife's  mother,  but  Thou  didst  come  by  and  save 
them.  Here  with  us  it  is  a  greater  case  than  Peter's 
wife's  mother,  it  is  Kim  Chong-jikee's  wife,  who  has 
prayed  us  to  heaven,  and  been  a  mother  by  faith.  She 
is  dying  of  the  cholera  and  we  are  helpless." 

One  eccentric  old  fellow,  a  Christian  of  Wi-ju, 
jumped  up,  clapped  his  hands  and  said  "  Chanmee 
hapsayta  (Hallelujah,  let's  sing).  God  has  answered." 
They  sang  their  verses  in  the  accents  of  the  Orient, 
sweet  to  their  ears  and  hers,  and  to  some  others'  who 
have  listened  long  enough.  To  the  strains  of  the 
music,  the  patient  rested  from  her  agony  and  dropped 
asleep.  Was  it  life  or  was  she  dying  ?  Willis  was  al- 
most startled  to  see  the  confidence  expressed  on  their 
faces.  "  Hadn't  God  answered,  she  couldn't  die."  Like 
a  Westerner  he  thought  "  but  if  she  should,  how  about 
their  faith  ?  "  Then  he  rebuked  himself,  and  said, "  I  am 
not  as  true  as  they." 

Mrs.  Kim  lived  for  many  a  day  yet  alive,  bright  and 
useful. 

Over  the  land  swept  the  disease.  With  all  precautions 
it  was  still  not  possible  for  every  one  to  escape.  More 
than  one  of  the  Western  people  were  taken  down  with 
symptoms  that  later  passed  away.  There  was  a  Russian, 
who  had  caught  it,  and  in  an  hour  or  so  was  dead. 
McKechern  had  had  a  lugubrious  look  for  a  day  or  two, 
and  was  splotched  with  green  about  the  face.  His  boy 
noticed  that  he  did  not  eat  his  breakfast,  and  seemed 


THE  CHOLERA  SCOURGE     165 

depressed  in  his  manner.  Later  in  the  day  a  great 
uneasiness  overtook  him  and  at  last,  with  quivering 
knees,  and  a  sinking  in  his  stomach,  he  took  down  to 
bed  and  had  his  companions  summoned  Gilbert  came 
first. 

"  What  is  it  ?  "  inquired  he. 

"  I  doot  it's  a'  up  wi'  me,  mon,  I'm  thinkin'  it's  foreor- 
dained." 

"  Let  me  get  the  doctor,"  said  Gilbert 

"The  what?  If  it's  the  predetermination  o'  the 
Almighty,  ye  need  na  bring  the  dochters  and  their 
decoctions.  The  Buik  says, '  It's  better  to  fa'  into  the 
hands  o'  God  than  into  the  hands  o'  man.' " 

Gilbert  remonstrated. 

"  Oh  aye,  it's  awfu'  aboot  the  wame,  but  I  maun  juist 
thole  it" 

At  this  point,  Foster  came  in.  McKechern  had  had  a 
cramping  spell  and  looked  like  death. 

"  It's  a'  ower  wi'  me,"  he  gasped. 

"  Not  a  bit  of  it,"  said  Foster,  and  his  face  beamed 
with  life  and  hope. 

"  Would  you  lauch  in  the  face  o'  death  ? "  asked 
McKechern  with  a  woe-begone  look. 

"  Nonsense,  there's  no  death  for  you  and  me,"  said  the 
triumphant  Pennsylvanian.  The  day  wore  on,  and  for  a 
time  hopes  were  darkened. 

"  Hae  ye  no  fear  o'  God  at  all  ? "  asked  McKechern, 
on  hearing  Foster  hum  over  some  lilting,  happy  tune. 

"  No,"  said  Foster, "  not  a  fear,  perfect  love  casteth 
out  fear." 

"  There  ye  are  noo  on  yer  perfection  again,  when  ye 
ought  to  be  covered  in  sackcloth  and  ashes." 

Such   things   only  stirred   up  the  poor  patient,  and 


166  THE  VANGUARD 

Foster  avoided  argument,  and  turned  his  hand  to  mak- 
ing the  sufferer  comfortable.  He  took  his  medicine  and 
kept  it  so  that  after  the  third  or  fourth  dose  the  rush  of 
the  disease  seemed  stayed.  How  tenderly  Foster  helped 
him  through.  This  shouting  Methodist  was  a  mystery 
to  McKechern. 

"  Was  it  a  dream  or  had  he  something  aifter  a'  ?  Hoo 
could  there  be  any  soondness  in  ony  creed  but  Calvin- 
ism ?  Arminianism  was  naething  but  wounds,  and  bruises, 
and  putrifying  sores,"  and  yet,  here  was  the  Arminian,  not 
afraid  of  death,  happy  in  the  face  of  God,  and  sensible 
before  men.  He  gave  the  matter  deep  thought  and  con- 
sideration. The  Calvinist  fears  of  all  his  ancestors  were 
on  him,  and  his  religion  was  not  happy,  but  "  Hoo  could 
it  make  a  mon  happy,  when  it  had  to  dae  wi'  sin,  and 
death,  and  eternal  damnation  ?  " 

"  Since  I  have  had  assurance  that  I  was  saved,"  said 
Foster. 

"  There  noo  yer  aff  again,"  said  McKechern,  "  yer 
theology  is  a'  a  hodge-podge.  I'm  fashed  to  hear  ye." 

"  Listen,"  said  Foster,  "  since  I  knew  I  was  saved,  life 
has  been  all  a  joy." 

"  Hoo  do  ye  ken  yer  saved  ?  Nae  mon  can  ken  that, 
he  may  hope  but  he  canna'  ken." 

"  Cheer  up,  brother,  God  loves  you  and  He  has  written 
your  name  in  the  Book.  How  are  you  feeling  ?  " 

"  Oh,  I'm  haudin'  my  ain  wi'  your  help.  It's  a  blessin* 
ye'll  get  for  standin'  by  the  least  o'  a'  saints,  when  he  has 
the  cholera." 

In  the  days  of  convalescence  Willis  dropped  in. 
"  Well,  McKechern,  glad  to  see  you  coming  round  so 
nicely." 

"  Yes,  the  Lord  has  graciously  spared  me,  and  I  trust 


THE  CHOLERA  SCOURGE     167 

I'm  thankfu',"  was  the  reply.  "  Death  is  stern,"  said  he, 
"  and  he  confronts  us  a',"  giving  Willis  a  faded  look. 

"  Not  all,"  said  Willis,  "  we  shall  not  all  die." 

"  And  whaur  do  ye  get  that  ?  " 

"  Death  is  finished  when  He  comes." 

"  Do  ye  tak'  that  as  leeteral  ?  " 

"Why  not?" 

"  These  are  your  pre-millennial  vie\vs,  Willis.  I  see 
mony  o'  yer  northern  folk  are  tinctured  wi'  them.  I 
hardly  ken  whaur  I  stand  masel  these  days.  There's 
Foster,  noo,  an  Arminian,  just  shouting  hallelujah,  and 
here  are  you  advocating  the  Second  Coming. " 

"  Ah  but,"  said  Willis,  "  Foster's  a  man  of  God,  pre- 
destined to  rejoice  through  eternity,  and  as  for  the  Sec- 
ond Coming,  I  have  no  use  for  those  who  make  it  a  war 
cry,  and  stir  up  strife,  but  through  these  years  it  has  been 
the  most  precious  thought  to  know  that  He  may  come, 
yes  any  day,  so  near  is  He  at  hand." 

"  And  do  you  teach  that  kind  o'  thing  to  yer  folk  ?  " 

"  No,  not  specially,  they  get  it  without  my  teaching." 

"  Mon,  ye've  been  blessed  up  North  then,  and  here  am 
I  an  auld  clout  that's  no  worth  the  savin'  and  God  has 
spared  me.  I'm  troubled  aboot  some  o'  thae  views  o' 
mine.  You'll  say  a  prayer,  Willis,  wi'  me,  won't  ye  ? 
I've  been  near  death  ye  ken  and  it  isn't  doctrine,  but  the 
Lord  Himself  that's  sufficient  at  sic  a  time." 

Willis  never  forgot  that  little  prayer-meeting,  when  he 
and  the  poor  shattered  Scot  bowed  their  heads  together. 
His  body  had  been  tortured  and  his  heart  was  broken. 
There  were  tears  on  his  face  as  he  said  his  thanks.  He 
had  met  his  man  by  the  brook  Jabbok,  and  had  been 
thrown,  and  his  thigh  was  out  of  joint ;  but  from  now 
on,  McKechern's  name  is  changed,  and  it  reads  Israel,  a 


168  THE  VANGUARD 

Prince  of  God.  His  Bible  was  thrown  wide  open,  Gos- 
pels and  Prophets,  and  like  Moses  on  the  mount  his  face 
shone  with  the  hope  and  joy  of  it. 

"  He  is  coming,"  said  he,  "  yes,  He  is  coming,  and  a' 
these  years  I  never  kenned  it." 

The  church  people  reported  that  Kim  Moksa  (Mc- 
Kechern)  was  converted  and  gave  thanks.  It  is  difficult 
to  say  who  rejoiced  most,  Willis  who  prayed  with  him, 
or  Ko  the  shoemaker,  who  had  prayed  for  him. 


XXII 
THE  HAPPY  HOME  LAND 

THERE  had  come  to  Willis  an  account  of  Shore- 
land's  wedding  with  photographs  of  his  home, 
his  wife,  and  himself.  He  was  a  prosperous 
man  of  business  and  his  joy  was  made  complete  by  a 
union  with  the  one  he  loved.  Their  home  was  beauti- 
ful, as  well-to-do  homes  in  America  are,  and  his  pros- 
pects were  fair  to  view.  Mrs.  Shoreland  had  been  told 
of  Willis,  and  joined  her  husband  in  the  wish  that  they 
might  hear  from  him  frequently.  Shoreland  was  not 
conscious  that  some  plain  words  of  his,  spoken  one  day 
in  a  dining-car,  had  influenced  an  old  gentleman  named 
Murray,  to  refuse  consent  to  his  daughter  Eline's  going 
as  Willis'  wife.  Had  he  known  it,  he  would  have  trav- 
elled across  the  Union  to  undo  the  wrong,  but  he  did  not 
know.  He  and  the  old  gentleman  Murray  had  dropped 
out  of  each  other's  recollection  for  the  present,  as  mere 
passers  do,  but  they  are  to  meet  again  under  circum- 
stances markedly  thrilling. 

"  Does  it  pay,"  asked  Shoreland,  "  this  crusade  you 
persist  upon.     Is  there  any  '  fun '  in  it  ?  " 
Willis  sent  his  answer, 

"MY  DEAR  SHORELAND: 

"  Amid  your  joy  of  setting  up  a  home,  the  most 
beautiful  thing  you  did  was  to  remember  the  wanderer 
off  here  in  the  Forbidden  Land,  and  tell  your  wife  about 
169 


iyo  THE   VANGUARD 

him.  I  rejoice  to  share  the  charm  and  beauty  of  your 
home  in  the  letter  you  send  me,  and  to  express  my  wishes 
that  your  joys  may  last  through  this  life  and  the  life  to 
come.  I  shall  look  for  letters  and  perhaps  for  a  visit  in 
the  not  distant  future ;  the  world  is  not  so  large  and  those 
who  come  East  once,  come  back  again. 

"  I  am  sorry  to  cast  a  shadow  across  my  letter  by  say- 
ing that  we  have  had  cholera,  and  for  the  last  three 
weeks  the  country  has  been  a  battle-field,  men,  women, 
and  children,  dropping  everywhere.  But  it  has  spent 
itself  and  I  trust  that  we  may  not  see  a  return  of  it  for 
many  years. 

"  I  wish  I  could  give  you  some  idea  of  the  work  here 
as  it  now  is,  but  you  shall  come  and  see  it  with  your  own 
eyes  some  day,  and  that  will  be  worth  more  to  you  than 
all  my  letters.  Is  there  '  fun '  in  it  you  ask  with  your 
pointed  commas.  I  should  reply,  yes.  There  used  to 
be  an  old  man  in  my  neighborhood,  in  Indiana,  who 
went  about  fishing  with  rod  and  line.  He  had  sunken 
lips  and  a  toothless  voice  and  he  did  not  wash,  but  his 
faculties  were  keen  still  and  he  spent  his  days  in  the 
nooks  and  corners  of  the  trout  stream.  I  used  to  follow 
him  and  watch.  He'd  fix  his  fly  and  cast  his  line, 
just  so,  and  wait  for  the  rise.  Then  he  would  play  with 
the  uncertain  shadow,  and  study  the  case,  draw  on  the 
rod  and  let  go,  this  way  and  that,  till  at  last,  before  my 
ecstatic  vision,  he  would  haul  out  a  speckled  trout,  beau- 
tiful to  behold,  and  say, '  Boy !  there  ain't  no  fun  like 
fishin','  which  I  thought  perfectly  true.  I  learned  it  from 
him  and  '  fun '  and  '  fishin' '  to  me  went  hand  in  hand.  I 
never  forgot  the  old  man  and  his  lesson,  and  all  through 
life  something  very  similar  has  existed  to  that  which  he 
taught  me.  I  am  out  here  in  the  East  fixing  the  bait, 


THE  HAPPY  HOME  LAND     171 

carting  the  hook,  studying  each  case  and  waiting  for  the 
bite.  There  is  the  same  interest  intensified,  similar 
though  giCBto  delights  of  expectation,  and  then  the  in- 
expressible joy  when  the  catch  is  made,  so  that  I  truly 
can  say, '  there  ain't  no  fun  like  fishing  for  men.' 

"  Pardon  this  brief  answer,  as  it  does  not  "yes  half 
of  what  I  would  like  to  say  in  reply  to  your  question. 
"  My  love  to  you  and  your  dear  wife. 

"  Ever  sincerely, 
«  H.  L.  WILLIS." 


XXIII 
THE  CALL  OF  KO 

DURING  the  months  and  years  that  have  passed, 
Teller  has  had  his  hand  in  the  work.  His  press 
"  Billy  "  has  recovered  from  the  monkey-wrench, 
and  has  been  knocking  off  the  pages  thousands  upon 
thousands.  They  have  gone  forth  north,  south,  east  and 
west,  into  the  narrowest  corners  of  the  empire,  and  have 
been  read  by  every  class.  Foster,  Gilbert,  and  Mc- 
Kechern  have  revised  and  prepared  afresh  portions  of  the 
New  Testament.  These  have  been  printed  fifty  thousand 
at  a  time,  and  sent  abroad  by  Willis'  men.  Teller  has 
hardly  been  outside  the  brick  walls  of  his  printing  office, 
but  the  results  of  his  work  have  touched  more  of  Korea 
than  any  other  influence.  Unnumbered  pages  still  go 
forth,  of  "  Voices  that  Speak,"  and,  "  I  and  the  Dragon," 
and  new  publications  have  been  issued  such  as  Bunyan's 
Pilgrim  illustrated  by  a  native  and  ornamented  with  top- 
knots and  tilted  eyes.  Other  books  are  being  added  and 
the  press  speeds  on.  Willis  has  had  for  years  a  regular 
corps  of  colporteurs  who  have  worked  systematically  and 
reported  to  him. 

Miss  Stillman  and  Mrs.  Kim  have  joined  forces  in  be- 
half of  women  and  girls.  Far  and  wide  there  has  gone 
forth  the  rumor,  that  women  were  equal  with  men  in  im- 
portance in  the  kingdom  of  heaven,  and  that  a  new  era 
had  dawned.  They  were  no  longer  mere  creatures  in- 
tended for  the  use  and  pleasure  of  their  lords,  but  inde- 
172 


THE  CALL  OF  KO  173 

pendent  and  responsible  before  God.  A  wave  of  interest 
in  literature  had  crossed  the  northland,  and  the  women 
were  found  in  groups  studying  the  syllabary  and  learning 
how  to  read.  Many  a  passer  on  the  highways  had  a 
New  Testament  strapped  under  her  girdle  string.  They 
all  hailed  with  joy  this  special  effort  for  the  women. 

It  relieved  Willis  somewhat  of  his  thousand  rails,  but 
to  the  old  toothless  mothers,  and  the  younger  ones  as 
well,  Willis  had  a  halo  round  his  head,  and  would  never 
be  replaced  by  any  other.  They  had  carried  their  bur- 
dens to  him  for  these  years  and  had  always  found  com- 
fort. 

"  I'll  tell  you,"  said  old  Grandma  Kim,  speaking  to 
Miss  Stillman,  "  he  has  just  no  faults  at  all,  and  why  he 
doesn't  marry  I  can't  telL" 

Miss  Stillman  looked  embarrassed  and  said  really  she 
did  not  know  either. 

"  If  I  could  just  see  him  married,"  said  the  old 
woman,  "  my  eyes  would  close  in  peace."  She  wished 
that  Miss  Stillman  would  lend  a  hand,  but  the  latter  was 
a  sensible  woman  and  pretended  she  did  not  understand. 

The  western  world  has  little  idea  of  how  important  a 
place  marriage  and  the  family  occupy  in  the  mind  of  the 
Orient.  It  still  remains  among  church  people,  as  of  old, 
an  all  important  subject  Reminders  of  it  came  to  Willis 
day  after  day,  and  with  each  returning  question  he  saw 
before  his  vision  the  tall  stately  girl,  beautiful  and  true, 
who,  to  please  her  father  had  pierced  her  life  and  his 
with  many  sorrows.  But  she  was  not  his  any  longer, 
and  he  tried  to  steel  his  heart  against  such  wanderings. 

He  had  rails  from  all  parts  of  the  country  to  come. 
His  colporteur  runners  reported  groups  of  one  hundred 
here,  two  hundred  there,  located  in  unexpected  places, 


174  THE  VANGUARD 

groups  that  had  accepted  the  gospel,  and  were  eagerly 
desirous  to  know  more.  He  would  take  Pang  along  and 
the  Dragon  and  make  a  wide  circuit,  while  Plum,  and 
the  rest  of  the  force  cared  for  those  nearer  home. 

Away  he  went  over  the  hills,  he  on  his  wheel,  and  the 
others  on  ponies.  Reports  had  it  these  days  that  the 
moksa  had  passed  such  and  such  a  point  on  a  "  self-goer  " 
(bicycle),  and  that  all  was  well.  The  laborers  in  the 
fields  pricked  up  their  ears  and  looked  as  he  went  by. 
Pack-bullocks  viewed  him  with  consternation.  This 
beast  that  he  rode,  seemingly  bones  and  no  flesh,  was 
none  other  than  a  racing  demon  of  some  sort.  They 
snorted  at  the  sight  of  it,  whirled  in  circles,  and  tugged 
at  the  ring  in  the  nose.  When  a  bull  got  free  he  went 
careering  along  the  highway,  his  tail  in  the  air  and  his 
neck  bells  jingling.  Willis  was  exceedingly  careful  not 
to  give  trouble  to  passers,  and  frequently  dismounted 
and  pushed  off  among  the  trees  to  let  the  animals  go  by. 

One  day  as  he  turned  the  ridge  of  a  hill  over  a  steep 
down  grade,  he  saw  before  him  at  a  little  distance,  a 
coolie  lazily  trudging  along  and  his  ox  walking  at  his 
side.  As  he  drew  nearer  Willis  shouted, 

"  I  say,  stranger,  take  hold  of  him ;  don't  let  him  run 
off." 

The  bewildered  coolie  left  the  pack-animal  and  made 
a  frantic  dash  for  the  bicycle  threw  himself  on  to  it  and 
made  surety  doubly  sure,  while  the  ox  went  flying,  and 
Willis  experienced  a  dismount  much  more  sudden  than 
usual. 

"  I  intended,"  said  Willis,  drawing  a  long  breath, "  that 
you  should  hold  on  to  the  animal." 

"  Oh,"  said  the  man,  "  I've  done  badly,  I  thought  it 
was  the  'self-goer'  you  wanted  me  to  catch."  The 


THE  CALL  OF  KO  175 

coolie  knew  of  Willis,  knew  it  was  he,  and  had  no  inten- 
tion of  letting  him  be  carried  off  by  this  wild  phantom 
without  some  effort  at  rescue. 

In  the  first  town  they  visited  there  seemed  no  end  of 
applicants  for  admission  to  the  church.  They  had  of 
their  own  free  will  set  apart  one  hut  as  a  chapel,  and  had 
run  a  long  pole  up  before  it,  where,  on  Sundays,  they  flew 
a  white  flag  with  a  red  cross.  This  was  henceforth  to 
become  the  mark  of  Christian  meeting-places. 

The  wide  circuit  could  not  be  undertaken  with  the 
force  he  had  on  hand.  He  would  go  back  to  Ping-yang 
and  ask  Ko  to  join  them. 

A  day  or  two  later  brought  them  home  to  the  city 
where  he  related  his  experiences  to  Plum.  Plum  gave  a 
shout,  wrinkled  the  tufts  up  and  down  the  sides  of  his 
head,  and  tipped  off  a  jig  to  express  his  deep  and  heart- 
felt joy.  His  wife  hoped  to  train  all  this  out  of  him 
shortly,  but  in  the  meantime  she  was  happy  too,  at  the 
report  that  had  been  given. 

"  Ko,  I  want  you  to  drop  your  shoemaking  and  come 
with  me,"  said  Willis. 

"  And  why?"  asked  Ko. 

"  Because  there  is  a  great  work  and  not  enough  on  hand 
to  do  it." 

"  I  am  thankful,"  said  Ko,  « that  God  calls  me,  but  I 
realize  there  is  much  need  for  care.  People  say  to  me 
now,  '  Teacher !  Teacher ! '  and  I  feel  the  pride  of  it 
till  I  have  to  gway  gibba  (pinch)  my  side  and  say 
•  Down  you  rascal,  down  you,  you  are  no  teacher,  you 
are  just  the  lowest  sinner  that  ever  was  saved.'  Pride  is 
the  danger.  There's  Peter,  he  was  so  easily  tripped  up 
but  the  moksa  will  pray  for  me,  won't  he? " 

Ko  took  two  hours  to  dose  up  his  boot  business  and 


176  THE   VANGUARD 

settle  his  accounts.  He  gave  away  the  surplus  he  had 
over,  and  asked  Mr.  Kim  to  pray  for  him.  "  Think 
what  I've  been,"  said  he,  "  worse  than  Peter.  Pray  that 
I  may  cherish  only  a  warm  and  thankful  heart." 

Willis  wrote  off  to  McKechern  to  come  north  and 
spend  a  month.  "  There  is  so  much  to  be  done  and  a 
little  change  will  do  you  good." 

A  week  later  came  McKechern,  all  that  was  left  of 
him,  thinned  down,  softened  and  sweetened. 

McKechern  was  asked  to  preach  and  never  in  his  life 
before  had  he  been  greeted  by  such  a  warm-hearted  respon- 
sive people.  He  could  feel  it  in  the  air  about  him  and  see 
it  on  their  faces.  Here  was  this  hard  old-fashioned  Scot, 
who  had  harped  all  his  days  on  effectual  calling,  till  God 
called  him  effectually,  and  then  his  voice  was  changed 
and  now  the  eyes  of  the  multitude  looked  his  way.  But 
his  dialect  changed  not,  it  had  withstood  the  polishing 
off  of  a  college  course,  for  in  those  days  he  believed  that 
broad  Scotch  and  the  Westminster  Confession  were  alike 
orthodox,  and  should  be  held  to  verbally  in  the  face  of 
ignorant  criticism.  His  Scotch  accent  entered  into  his 
Korean  in  a  way  to  make  the  congregation  smile  broadly. 
They  enjoyed  it  and  listened  with  great  attention. 
To-day  the  people  looked  on  a  new  moksa  who  had  died 
and  come  to  life  again,  and  they  would  hear  what  he  had 
to  say.  Ko  sat  on  the  front  mat  along  with  Pang  and  his 
eyes  were  full  of  expectation,  and  apparently  Ko  was 
right.  Heretofore  there  had  been  something  about  the 
Scot  that  seemed  to  stand  as  a  barrier  between  him  and 
the  people.  Now  it  was  different,  and  at  the  close  of  the 
service  they  flocked  about  McKechern,  every  one  desir- 
ous to  speak  to  him.  The  women  too  as  they  looked 
with  beaming  faces  gave  him  such  a  thrill  of  welcome  as 


THE  CALL  OF  KO  177 

served  for  tonic  to  his  worn  physique.  Here  was  a 
glimpse  of  what  these  years  had  brought  to  Willis,  and 
now  his  ears  not  only  heard,  but  his  eyes  saw  evidence 
of  the  mighty  force  that  was  moving  among  the  people. 
Nothing  ever  pleased  Willis  more  than  this  reception 
of  McKechern.  The  fearsome  auld  Scot,  who  could  na' 
pray  other  than  at  prayers  was  suddenly  transfigured  and 
touched  off  with  a  heavenly  light  so  that  Ko  wept  for 
joy. 


XXIV 

NORTH  AGAIN 

THEY  were  to  start  in  the  morning  towards  the 
north.    That  night  McKechern  dropped  a  letter 
to  Foster,  asking  him  to  lay  aside  translation  for 
a  few  days  and  join  them.     "  Come  and  see  what  God  is 
doing  here  and  we'll  go  back  together  and  be  inspired 
afresh  for  our  part  of  the  task." 

Willis  and  McKechern  were  accompanied  by  Ko  and 
Pang.  The  Dragon  as  usual  brought  up  the  rear.  He 
was  somewhat  subdued  was  the  Dragon,  McKechern  had 
made  a  deep  impression  on  him.  Evidently  there  were 
two  kinds  of  Christians  in  the  church,  those  that  felt  it, 
and  those  that  did  not.  The  Dragon  meditated  on  this 
mystery. 

As  usual  the  journey  was  enlivened  by  the  unexpected. 
There  were  strange  sights  and  strange  companions  all  of 
interest  to  McKechern,  who  had  never  before  been  so  far 
to  the  north.  By  the  evening  of  the  first  day  they  were 
approaching  a  village  in  which  was  a  tall  new  flagstaff, 
where  the  red  cross  had  floated  the  day  before.  Already 
word  had  gone  forth  that  the  moksas  (missionaries)  were 
coming  and  a  group  of  men  with  beaming  faces  were  on  the 
way  out  to  meet  them.  When  they  came  together  there 
were  words  of  welcome,  and  peace,  peace  from  every  mouth. 
Accompanied  by  this  group,  the  missionaries  entered  the 
town,  and  became  at  once  the  centre  of  attraction.  This 
journey  differed  from  many  of  the  former  trips  of  Willis. 
178 


NORTH   AGAIN  179 

There  was  no  poking  of  holes  through  the  paper  doors,  or 
trampling  each  other.  It  was  quiet  and  subdued,  and  the 
business  of  the  town  concerned  the  Doctrine.  This  was 
the  whole  question.  They  desired  to  enter  the  church 
and  now  presented  themselves  for  examination.  Here 
too,  there  were  seventy-five  fresh  applicants,  and  the  day 
following  was  set  apart  for  the  receiving  of  them.  That 
night  there  was  a  service  held  of  singing,  reading,  and 
exposition,  of  the  New  Testament.  The  room  was 
packed  and  though  without  ventilation,  there  was  no 
sleepy  stupidity. 

When  the  applicants  came,  a  middle-aged  man  called 
Ha  was  first  questioned. 

"  Why  have  you  come  ?  "  asked  Willis. 

"  Come?     Because  I'm  a  believer." 

"  What  may  that  mean  ?  " 

He  thought  for  a  little.  "  It  means  that  I,  Ha,  burdened 
with  sin,  have  looked  to  Jesus  whom  the  Book  tells  of." 

"  Who  told  you  about  sin  ?  " 

"  Why  I  heard  about  it,  but  it  did  not  make  any  im- 
pression till  I  read  the  words  of  the  Book  and  then  I 
cried  out  because  of  it." 

"  Has  believing  made  any  change  in  your  daily  life  ?  " 

"  Yes,  I  think  it  has.  I  don't  care  for  the  old  things  I 
used  to  do,  they  are  distasteful." 

"What  things?" 

"  Oh,  the  rags,  you  know,  and  the  paper  and  the  wor- 
ship at  the  grave.  I  have  no  mind  for  them  any  more, 
though  I  used  to  think  them  so  important." 

"  What  acts  of  worship  do  you  have  in  your  home  ?  " 

"  In  my  home  ?  Me  and  the  wife  and  the  children 
read  and  pray  at  night  and  in  the  morning,  and  we  al- 
ways thank  God  for  the  food  He  gives," 


i8o  THE  VANGUARD 

"  Does  your  wife  believe?  " 

"  I  should  think  she  does,  better  than  I." 

"  Has  this  belief  made  any  change  in  your  inside 
life?" 

"  Yes,  there  is  peace,  where  there  used  to  be  a  gnaw- 
ing for  drink  and  other  indications  of  demons." 

"  Are  you  ready  to  stand  persecution  ?  " 

"  Persecution  ?  "  he  thought  again.  "  I  don't  know 
but  what  I  am,  I  can't  really  tell  beforehand." 

"  Why  do  you  want  to  be  baptized  ?  " 

"  I  want  to  do  what  Christ  asks  and  have  the  world 
see  that  I  am  a  member  of  the  Doctrine." 

"  What  about  the  Lord's  Day  ?  "  asked  Willis. 

"  We  keep  it  as  our  preaching  day ;  all  the  Christians 
do." 

His  manner  was  quiet  and  his  words  were  humble  and 
thankful,  and  he  was  passed.  Frequently  the  manner 
meant  more  than  the  words. 

"  The  Lord  bless  you,"  broke  out  McKechern. 

Willis'  manner  was  always  quiet,  but  he  possessed  a 
peculiar  kind  of  personal  magnetism,  not  describable  or 
translatable  to  paper,  and  yet  intensely  real  and  power- 
ful in  its  influence,  that  seemed  specially  felt  on  such  oc- 
casions. They  hung  on  his  words  as  though  the  secret  of 
life  was  with  him. 

Among  the  problems  that  confronted  them  was  the 
marriage  question. 

"  Are  you  married  ?  "  Willis  asked  of  a  clean-coated 
townsman,  who  presented  himself  and  was  well  reported 
of. 

"  Yes,  I  was  married  when  I  was  ten  years  old,  but  it  is 
all  a  bad  story.  When  I  was  eighteen  we  didn't  get  on 
and  so  I  took  another  woman,  who  was  older  and  had 


NORTH  AGAIN  181 

two  children  by  another  man.  That  man,  however,  said 
it  didn't  make  any  difference,  as  he  had  no  special  liking 
for  her.  I  gave  him  200  yang  to  square  matters.  Then 
my  wife  she  got  angry  and  went  off.  The  other  woman 
stayed ;  we've  lived  together  fifteen  years,  and  have  two 
children." 

"  Married  and  gi'en  in  marriage,"  said  McKechern  to 
himself  with  a  shake  of  the  head. 

These  matrimonial  tangles  were  among  the  sorrows  of 
Willis'  life.  In  his  ignorance  and  fears  as  to  how  to  deal, 
he  appealed  once  to  an  old  German  missionary  of  China, 
one  of  the  wisest  and  Godliest  men,  that  the  Far  East 
has  ever  seen. 

"  Don't  go  back  to  stir  up  the  past,"  said  he.  "  The 
result  will  be  a  foul  smell  and  no  good.  Restitution  is 
right,  but  the  ripping  and  patching  of  marriage  ties  is  not 
for  us." 

Willis  felt  this  to  be  true  and  where  there  was  but  one 
actual  partner  in  the  question  he  let  matters  stand. 

It  was  a  weary  but  thankful  party  that  turned  in  to 
sleep  late  at  night.  Ko  realized  the  dream  of  his  new  life. 
Here  he  was  free-handed  to  preach  and  pray.  Much  of 
the  night  he  spent  with  his  face  in  the  corner  of  the 
room,  over  a  dim  sputtering  candle,  spelling  out  the 
Book.  These  were  the  words  of  life  and  he  had  slept 
nearly  forty  years,  now  he  would  read.  "  Here  is  the 
man  Eutychus,"  he  murmured  to  himself.  "  He  slept  and 
fell  out  of  the  window.  Peter  slept  and  lost  track  of  the 
Saviour.  Give  grace,  oh  God,  to  Thy  child  Ko  to  keep 
his  eyes  well  open." 

McKechern  noticed  from  the  cover  of  his  blankets  how 
Ko  hid  away  to  read  his  Bible,  and  how  he  murmured  to 
himself  at  midnight,  and  the  Scotchman's  prayers  went 


f 
182  THE  VANGUARD 

up  in  good  broad  accents  that  Ko  would  never  have 
understood,  but  which  said,  "  God  bless  the  brither  who 
has  learned  so  soon  to  watch  and  pray." 

From  town  to  town  they  passed  counting  the  flag 
poles.  In  each  place  Willis  appointed  a  leader,  who, 
without  remuneration,  would  see  to  keeping  order  and 
report  definitely.  Much  depended  on  a  wise  choice,  and 
in  this  matter  he  excelled.  The  Church  to-day  in  the 
North  is  strong  from  the  strength  of  his  first  choos- 
ings.  The  party  spent  one  Sunday  in  the  town  of  Sook- 
Chang,  where  the  white  flag  with  the  red  cross  snapped 
in  the  breeze.  In  their  best  and  most  immaculate  white 
came  the  worshippers,  some  of  the  women  walking  ten 
miles,  always  cheerful  and  preaching  to  every  passer. 
The  interest  was  lively  and  the  day  a  marvel  for  so  sleepy 
a  land.  McKechern  enjoyed  it  more  than  words  can  ex- 
press, for  there  was  a  freedom  in  this  manner  of  mission 
work  that  was  unknown  to  him. 

In  one  or  two  places  the  flag  had  been  raised  by  polit- 
ical discontents,  who  thought  by  this  means  to  overawe 
the  officials  and  gain  their  own  way,  for  the  official,  sit- 
ting back  in  his  cubby-hole,  often  viewed  with  fear  and 
trembling  the  raising  of  the  flagstaff.  In  such  cases 
Willis  would  set  aside  the  self-constituted  leader,  put 
some  humble,  hopeful  man  in  his  place  and  leave  matters 
to  adjust  themselves. 

Most  of  the  Christian  settlements  had  started  schools 
of  their  own  accord,  and  the  girls  and  women  were  learn- 
ing to  read.  Willis  made  it  one  of  his  rules  not  to  admit 
any  young  woman  with  good  eyes  who  had  not  learned 
to  read,  the  learning  being  a  fair  indication  of  her  ear- 
nestness of  purpose.  So  each  woman  carried  the  book 
tied,  in  her  waist  band,  and  McKechern  had  the  joy  of 


NORTH  AGAIN  183 

seeing  them  poring  over  the  sentences  that  he  had 
labored  hard  to  translate.  It  was  a  perfect  reward  thus 
to  see  his  translations  going  out  on  their  intended  service 
to  the  ends  of  the  Empire.  His  voice  and  Foster's  might 
never  be  heard,  but  here  were  the  results  of  their  labors 
going  on  and  on. 


XXV 
THE  ATTACK  ON  WINTERSHINE 

THEY  had  passed  a  day  of  special  enjoyment 
and  were  on  their  way  Monday  afternoon,  when 
suddenly  they  met  a  frantic  flying  Westerner 
who  turned  out  to  be  Wintershine.  His  eyes  were  wild. 
"  I  have  been  mobbed  by  these  beastly  Koreans," 
said  he.  "  They  are  on  my  track  now  and  you  people 
had  better  turn  and  fly  when  you  have  a  chance." 

Willis  inquired  as  to  what  was  up. 

"  The  brutes ! "  said  he.  "  Who  knows  what  they 
want  ?  They  mean  murder." 

Along  came  Wintershine's  horses  looking  as  though 
they  had  raced  for  life.  When  he  could  not  persuade 
Willis  and  McKechern  to  fly  with  him,  he  gave  a  sneer 
as  a  parting  salute  and  plunged  headlong  on  his  way. 
"  These  missionaries,"  muttered  he,  "  do  nothing  but  stir 
up  the  people." 

He  had  landed  in  the  town  where  Willis  and  his  fellow- 
travellers  were  to  spend  the  night,  and  had  pitched  his 
tent  on  the  grassy  lawn  by  one  of  the  ancestral  graves, 
driving  pegs  round  the  sacred  place,  and  setting  fires  go- 
ing when  he  ought  not. 

The  town  people  looked  on  speechless  with  amaze- 
ment, and  then  the  squire  of  the  village,  a  dignified  old 
gentleman  with  a  countenance  like  a  god,  put  on  his  best 
headgear  and  marched  forth  to  meet  the  trespasser. 

Wintershine  was  in  his  tent,  and  his  boy  was  scattering 
184 


THE  ATTACK  ON  WINTERSHINE  185 

blood  and  hen  feathers  all  over  the  place.  This  was  a 
fresh  insult,  and  the  squire  was  so  pent  up  he  could  hardly 
speak.  He  lifted  his  huge  spectacles  till  they  were  well 
up  on  his  brow,  and  his  eyes  could  see  from  beneath. 

"  Under  Heaven  and  among  men,"  said  he, "  and  since 
the  days  of  Yo  and  Soon  [2300  B.  c.j  the  laws  that  gov- 
ern the  behavior  of  human  beings  should  be  in  accord 
with  the  eternal  fitness  of  .  .  ." 

"  What  does  he  say  ?  "  inquired  Wintershine,  from  the 
interior  of  the  tent,  where  he  had  lain  down  to  snooze. 

"  He  no  say  anything  yet,"  replied  the  boy. 

"  Tell  him  to  get  out  then,"  roared  Wintershine. 

"  Will  your  excellence  condescend  to  take  your  honour- 
able carcass  out  of  this,"  said  the  boy ;  "  my  master  he 
command  it."  This  sent  the  squire  into  a  fit. 

"  Tell  me  to  get  out  of  this,  do  you  !  Ye  gods  !  When 
was  there  ever  such  a  word  spoken  !  All  ye  dwellers  on 
earth,  did  you  ever  hear  it,  and  ye  fathers  in  the  yellow 
pit  .  .  ." 

With  the  spring  of  a  panther,  Wintershine  was  out  of 
his  tent.  He  waited  for  no  explanation,  but  took  the 
squire  by  the  back  of  the  neck,  and  with  a  vicious  kick 
sent  him  over  the  embankment.  Poor  old  squire,  not 
only  were  his  people's  ancestors  pegged  through,  but 
here  he  was  headlong  in  the  mud,  headgear  and  dignity 
ruined  forever.  He  lay  for  a  moment  or  two,  and  then 
in  a  bewildered  way  picked  himself  up  and  started  for 
home,  muttering  incoherent  words  ;  but  the  town  folk 
had  had  enough  of  this ;  they  would  stand  no  more,  and 
with  a  rush  they  crossed  the  fields. 

"What  do  these  fools  want?"  roared  Wintershine. 

"  I  think  master  they  very  angry,  you  kick  squire." 

Wintershine  picked  up  his  repeating  rifle  and  sent  half 


i86  THE  VANGUARD 

a  dozen  bullets  flying  over  the  heads  of  the  people.  They 
stopped,  turned  and  rushed  back,  shouting  wildly. 

The  boy  was  Korean  enough  to  know  that  they  had 
stirred  up  a  brood  of  savages,  and  the  thing  was  to  get 
off  without  further  delay.  He  hauled  up  the  tent  pegs, 
and  rolled  the  bundles  together,  and  the  pony  men,  see- 
ing the  plight  matters  had  come  to,  were  on  hand  with 
their  horses  uninvited. 

Guarding  the  rear  of  the  procession  with  his  Win- 
chester rifle  whirling  wildly  round  him,  Wintershine 
fought  them  off,  and  does  not  know  to  this  day  how  he 
escaped  the  stones  that  went  "  squat "  into  the  mud  on 
each  side,  or  "  whiz  "  through  the  air  just  past  his  head. 
He  lost  an  aneroid  barometer  worth  twenty-five  dollars, 
and  a  number  of  other  things,  and  swore  in  his  wrath 
that  any  missionaried  land  that  could  act  so,  speaks  for 
the  kind  of  missionaries  that  have  had  to  do  with  it. 

The  town  folk  were  incensed  beyond  measure.  There 
was  here  also  a  flagpole  and  a  few  Christians.  The  flag- 
pole represented  foreign  influence,  and  the  town  had  had 
enough  of  it.  They  would  haul  down  the  pole  and  run 
the  Christians  out  of  the  place.  The  leader,  a  decent 
man,  and  a  humble  believer,  was  mortified  beyond  meas- 
ure. True  enough  he  was  a  Western  barbarian,  in  ap- 
pearance quite  like  a  moksa,  going  about  with  hob-nails 
in  his  boots  to  kick  people  with,  and  a  gun  to  frighten 
them  off  regardless  of  property  rights,  age  or  dignity. 

The  old  squire,  feeling  battered  and  humiliated,  said 
the  time  had  come  to  clear  the  town  of  all  such  intruders, 
who  had  no  manners  and  consequently  no  Doctrine  to 
preach  he  saw  no  way  for  it  but  to  pull  down  the  pole, 
bamboo  the  Christians,  and  run  them  out  of  to?vn.  Pak, 
the  leader,  said  he  would  like  to  express  the  hope  that 


THE  ATTACK  ON  WINTERSHINE  187 

there  were  differences  in  foreigners  as  there  were  in 
Koreans,  but  really  he  was  ashamed  for  the  cause  he 
represented  and  had  no  words  to  say. 

When  Wintershine  went  on  his  way  Willis  planned 
the  method  of  their  approach.  He  and  Ko  would  go  on 
in  advance  on  foot,  and  strike  into  the  town,  not  by  the 
broad  road,  but  over  the  paddy-fields.  Before  the 
people  were  aware  of  it  he  was  in  the  market  square  and 
asking  for  the  squire.  The  little  boys  thought  there 
would  be  a  fine  show  when  these  two  met,  and  led  him 
the  way  quickly. 

The  squire  had  had  enough  of  Westerners  for  one  day, 
and  so  did  not  rise  to  greet  Willis  or  show  him  any  wel- 
>  come.  Ko  in  the  meantime  kept  the  crowd  in  the  street 
interested  by  his  inquiries. 

When  Willis  had  said  "  peace,"  he  remarked  that  there 
had  been  trouble  and  judged  that  the  Western  passer  had 
done  some  act  of  lawlessness  to  bring  it  about  "  I  am 
exceedingly  sorry,"  said  he,  "  and  I  would  like  to  do  what 
I  can  to  make  amends." 

The  squire  softened  down  a  little.  "  Really,"  said  he, 
"  there  was  nothing  to  make  such  a  fuss  about,  but  he 
did  drive  pegs  into  a  grave  back  of  the  town,  and  defiled 
the  place  not  a  little,  and  when  I  went  to  remonstrate  he 
kicked  me  so  that  I  feel  it  yet." 

"  He  was  a  brute,"  said  the  onlookers. 

"  Be  quiet,"  said  the  squire,  "  don't  use  that  name  be- 
fore the  gentleman." 

Willis  took  the  situation  in  at  once.  It  was  another 
case  of  brutality  such  as  he  had  seen  more  than  once, 
and  which  in  the  far  East  brings  on  Boxer  troubles. 

There  was  nothing  he  could  do  to  make  amends  but 
to  be  kind  and  gentlemanly,  and  watch  for  an  opportunity 


i88  THE  VANGUARD 

to  touch  the  old  man's  heart  in  future.  He  sent  him  a 
bottle  of  quinine,  some  cakes  of  soap,  and  packages  of 
candles  wrapped  in  the  red  books,  which  is  the  Oriental 
way  of  making  friends,  and  the  old  man  was  mollified  and 
sent  a  chicken  and  eggs  in  return. 

The  flagpole  remained,  and  the  Christians  were  left  un- 
molested, and  the  spirit  of  forgiveness  that  ruled  the  old 
man  was  afterwards  rewarded. 


XXVI 
THE  SUMMONS  HOME 

WHEN  McKechera's  letter  reached  Foster,  he  at 
once  set  his  house  in  order  for  a  trip  North, 
knowing  that  there  must  be  something  worth 
seeing  to  call  forth  so  enthusiastic  an  expression  from  a 
canny  Scotchman. 

Steamers  of  from  four  to  seven  hundred  tons,  manned 
partly  by  Japanese,  partly  by  Koreans,  make  two  or 
three  trips  a  week,  starting  from  Chemulpo.  He  would 
take  one  of  these  and  join  the  friends  who  had  gone 
before  him,  and  add  his  hallelujah.  How  glorious  the 
day !  A  lovely  summer  sun  shimmered  across  the  Yellow 
Sea  and  sampans  with  their  sails  tipped  the  shadows  here 
and  there.  Heaps  of  coolies  lay  basking,  warm  and  bliss- 
ful, with  no  intervening  clouds  to  disturb  their  slumber. 
Up  on  the  bluff  flew  the  Union  Jack,  a  sign  of  good  order, 
and  back  of  the  hfll  was  the  whistle  of  a  restless  white 
man's  steam  engine.  Here  was  a  reminder  or  two  of  the 
West  in  the  eternal  quiet  of  the  Orient  Foster  rejoiced 
at  the  evidence  of  the  white  man's  energy,  for  he  believed 
fully  that  in  the  wake  of  the  Gospel  would  come  all  the 
triumphs  of  civilization.  The  trader,  the  merchant,  the 
engineer,  the  miner  were  messengers  of  good,  provided 
they  recognized  God  and  the  rights  of  their  fellow-men. 
He  was  glad,  glad  of  the  age  he  lived  in,  glad  to  behold 
the  peaceful  scene,  blessed  with  evidences  of  contentment 
and  prosperity. 

189 


190  THE  VANGUARD 

He  pulled  out  to  his  steamer  in  a  sampan  and  saw  the 
captain,  sitting  cross-legged  reading  a  book.  They 
would  not  sail  for  two  hours  yet,  perhaps  not  for  longer, 
he  would  see.  The  flup,  flup,  flup  of  the  returning  tide 
was  all  the  sound  that  greeted  him,  till  the  coolies 
waked,  and  yawned,  and  turned  to,  to  fill  in  the  remain- 
ing cargo.  It  was  two  o'clock  in  the  afternoon  when  the 
anchor  was  weighed  and  the  ship  pulled  out  of  harbor. 
In  a  few  hours  he  would  be  across  this  sleepy  sea  and 
into  scenes  of  life  and  animation,  that  would  gladden  his 
heart  and  reward  him  for  the  arduous  labors  of  many  a 
translation  day.  Yonder  was  Kang-hoa,  with  its  smoky 
hills,  where  kings  fled  six  hundred  years  ago  to  escape 
the  Mongols.  An  atmosphere  of  sadness  about  it  too  ! 
The  Mongols  were  dead  and  the  kings.  Here  was 
Whanghai,  the  great  mission  field,  alive  with  its  flags 
flying.  Yes  Genghis  Khan  and  Kublai  would  be  for- 
gotten, but  the  Good  Old  News  would  go  on  and  on. 

Night  closed  dark,  but  the  sea  was  steady  and  the 
churning  of  the  screw  ceased  not.  He  would  go  below 
and  turn  in.  Suddenly  there  was  a  mighty  jar,  the 
sound  of  cracking  steel  and  splintering  wood,  and  then 
an  awful  silence.  Who  can  tell  the  flashes  of  those 
few  moments  that  shoot  in  their  long  streamers  across 
the  mind  ?  There  were  mad  shoutings  and  frantic  foot- 
falls on  deck.  They  had  been  rammed  by  another  ship, 
some  one  had  blundered,  and  their  boat  was  going  down 
into  the  deep.  There  was  no  help,  no  hand  stretched 
out,  no  rope  to  hold  by ;  ropes,  and  spars,  and  engines, 
and  anchor-chains,  everything  was  going.  Underneath 
this  most  hopeful  of  men,  whose  face  had  known  no 
shadows  and  whose  life  was  thanksgiving  and  joy,  the 
earth  and  its  supports  were  giving  way.  Over  went  the 


THE  SUMMONS   HOME         191 

ill-fated  steamer,  a  rushing  gurgling  sound,  some  ripples 
under  the  shadows,  and  it  was  quiet. 

Angel  fingers  shall  touch  off  the  record  that  remains, 
while  those  who  knew  him  bow  their  heads  and  whisper, 
"  God's  will  be  done." 

A  day  or  two  later  while  Willis  and  McKechern  were 
in  the  midst  of  examinations,  there  came  a  messenger  in 
hot  haste  with  a  telegram.  "  Wreck  on  the  Yellow  Sea, 
Foster  among  the  missing."  A  note  from  Plum  con- 
firmed the  tidings ;  he  had  gone  down  with  the  ill-fated 
ship  ten  miles  from  land. 

It  was  impossible  for  the  moment  to  realize  that  it 
could  be  true.  McKechern  kept  asking,  How  can  it 
be  that  he  has  gone  from  us,  and  the  refrain  kept  repeat- 
ing, "  Will  he  no  come  back  again  ?  " 

Ko  went  to  his  room  to  think  it  over.  The  moksa 
who  had  prayed  for  him  and  helped  him  had  gone  to 
heaven,  that  was  the  whole  case  summed  up.  They 
would  miss  him,  but  still  he  would  rejoice,  for  had  not 
God  called  him  ?  John  the  Baptist,  James  the  brother 
of  John,  Paul  himself,  had  all  gone  in  a  mysterious  way. 
They  were  the  martyrs  and  so  was  the  moksa.  Ko  wept 
while  he  prayed  and  then  dried  his  tears  and  said, 
"  Kamsa  ham-nay-ta  ! "  (Thanks  be  to  Thee.) 

To  Willis  it  was  a  great  personal  loss.  Foster  had  been 
one  of  the  founders  of  the  Church,  and  had  stood 
squarely  for  the  rights  of  the  people.  He  was  known  to 
all  classes  and  loved  by  high  and  low  alike,  and  his  name 
was  associated  with  the  opening  of  the  gates  to  the 
Hermit  Kingdom.  The  Yellow  Sea  is  his  resting-place. 
Willis  will  never  look  upon  its  waters  hereafter  without 
the  face  coming  back  to  him  so  full  of  life  and  joy. 
There  is  no  head-stone  erected,  but  across  its  heaving 


192  THE  VANGUARD 

surface  there  will  be  written  in  letters  of  bright  sunshine, 
"  Until  He  Come." 

"  That  was  the  moksa  who  had  the  high  nose  and  the 
wavy  hair?  "  inquired  the  Dragon  of  himself.  "  He  was 
yam-jun  hao  [altogether  good]  and  he  gave  me  a  pair  of 
gloves  when  he  passed  north  two  years  ago  with  Kim 
moksa.  Kim  moksa  so  changed,  just  as  if  he  had  been 
to  heaven,  and  pa  moksa  [Foster]  really  gone  to  heaven," 
how  straight  it  was,  and  the  Dragon  drew  a  long  breath 
to  think  it  over.  Life  was  a  bit  gloomy  for  him  at 
present ;  he  caught  a  large  "  scissors-grinder  "  or  cicada, 
held  it  between  his  fingers  and  looked  it  carefully  over. 
"  You've  got  six  legs  .  .  .  and  you  know  how  to  eat 
dew,  .  .  .  and  you  can  fly,"  says  the  Dragon,  "  but 
you  can't  go  to  heaven."  He  gave  it  a  squeeze  and  it 
went  "  S-s-s-s-s  "  and  Yap  jumped  up  and  said,  "  Wuff !  " 

"  Lie  down,  Yap,  it's  only  a  mamee  [scissors -grinder]. 
Do  you  hear  him  ?  "  "  S-s-s-s  !  S-s-s-s  ! "  Went  the 
beetle  while  Yap  yawned  and  winked  at  it.  At  last  he 
let  it  go  and  Yap  came  up  smiling  and  wagged  his  short 
tail. 

"  Now,  dog,  you  needn't  take  on  as  though  you  were 
something,  you  haven't  any  soul  either  more  than  the 
'mamee 's  got.  Not  a  soul  have  you,  Yap." 

"  Uh-h-h  ! "  said  the  dog  in  response. 

"  But  you've  got  no  crimes  laid  up  against  you  either, 
and,  think  of  it,  you  don't  know  how  to  sin.  When  I 
get  tangled  up  about  this  Doctrine  and  have  my  whole 
insides  to  fight  against,  I  sometimes  wish  I  was  you, 
Yap." 

The  loss  of  Foster  changed  the  conditions  of  work  in 
the  capital,  and  McKechern  had  to  leave  at  once.  The 
needs  were  increased  and  their  best  worker  had  fallen. 


THE  SUMMONS   HOME       193 

Over  the  Yellow  Sea  he  sailed,  crossing  the  spot  where 
the  ships  had  rammed  each  other,  but  the  water  glistened 
and  the  sun  shone  sweetly.  A  Japanese  man-of-war  had 
come  to  look  about,  but  there  was  nothing  to  watch  or 
rescue,  and  so  it  turned  and  steamed  away. 


XXVII 
FIREBLOWER  AND  THE  MAN  KANG 

THE  people  in  Fireblower's  Church  had  for  a 
long  time  been  discontented.  He  would  not 
allow  them  to  read  the  New  Testament  in 
Chinese,  they  must  read  the  vernacular  and  that  only, 
and  the  consequence  was  that  they  failed  to  read  any- 
thing. Saw,  the  leader,  said  to  Fireblower,  "  Will  the 
teacher  condescend  to  consider  the  fact  that  Chinese  is  an 
eye-language,  that  readily  sinks  into  the  mind,  while 
Korean  script  is  an  ear  language  and  takes  a  long  time 
to  reach  the  soul." 

"  Not  a  word  of  truth  in  it,"  said  Fireblower.  "  The 
Chinese  is  of  the  devil  and  I  don't  want  you  to  use  it  in 
my  Church.  Do  you  understand  ?  The  vernacular  does 
not  minister  to  your  fleshly  pride  and  that's  why  you 
don't  want  it.  I'll  have  no  Chinese  in  my  meeting- 
house." 

"  But,"  said  Saw,  "  Willis  moksa  allows  them  to  use 
Chinese  or  anything  else  that  will  aid  them  to  under- 
stand, and  there  are  many  earnest  believers  in  his  meet- 
ing." 

"Not  a  believer  worth  calling  the  name,"  said  he, 
"  and  as  for  Willis,  I  have  no  intention  of  following  him ; 
he  has  all  sorts  of  those  ways  of  working,  no  proper 
discipline  at  all." 

"  But,"  said  Saw, "  they  love  him  and  speak  favorably." 
194 


FIREBLOWERANDTHEMANKANG   195 

"  Woe  onto  you  when  all  men  shall  speak  well  of  you. 
Take  that  and  shot  right  up." 

Saw  was  crushed  by  die  arrogant  manner  of  the  man 
Fireblower.  He  would  hear  no  words.  His  doctrine 
was  sound  and  his  heart  was  full  of  tenderness,  so  that 
his  eyes  frequently  overflowed,  but  point  an  objection  at 
him  and  he  was  on  to  you  like  a  tiger.  These  poor 
fjjtitft  of  fcfs  Kr***  been  stormed  and  thundered  at  till  they 
were  meek  outwardly  and  discontented  inwardly. 

An  Oriental  is  the  most  stubborn  of  all  human  crea- 
tures. You  may  kick  him  down  to  the  water-trough, 
but  no  power  wul  make  him  drink.  He  wffl  lie  down 
and  die,  but  drink,  never. 

These  people  would  not  be  coerced  into  the  kingdom 
of  heaven.  They  loved  their  pastor  and  saw  his  earnest- 
ness, but  the  heady  spirit  that  possessed  him  ruined  his 
efforts,  and  they  would  look  elsewhere.  They  had  with 
their  own  hands  and  rands  built  them  a  church,  and  yet 
in  place  of  being  happy  they  were  miserable.  They  had 
given  him  the  deeds  to  keep  and  haH  trusted  him  implic- 
itly, and  he  had  only  kicked  diem  in  return. 

In  a  quiet  hour  when  Fireblower  was  not  present,  they 
held  a  conference. 

M  111  tdl  you  what  it  is,"  said  Saw,  cracking  his  pipe 
over  the  brazier  to  dear  it  for  a  smoke.  "  We've  had 
enough  of  this,  the  teacher  is  a  tyrant,  and  crasser  than 
tibe  lord  of  the  mountains.  I'm  for  seeing  Willis  and 
going  over  to  him;  hell  treat  us  as  human  beings.  They 
say  he's  over  there  by  the  Camel  Range.  Tm  off  to 
see  him  to-morrow  and  Rang  wul  go  with  me."  They 
all  gave  their  tnm  ill  and  the  meeting  closed. 

Firebiower's  boy,  Toothout,  had  att»-ii<fo^  and  he 
went  at  once  and  told  his  master.  The 


196  THE   VANGUARD 

furious  rage  and  prayed  that  they  might  not  all  be  sent 
to  hell,  though  his  accents  implied  that  they  ought  to  be. 

Kang  rather  liked  the  excitement ;  he  had  told  Saw 
that  Willis  would  treat  him  kindly  and  take  over  the 
whole  church.  Kang's  judgment  was  not  always  to  be 
trusted.  He  had  more  than  once  given  trouble  to  the 
local  missionary  who  was  one  of  Willis'  colaborers. 

A  few  words  about  Kang  are  necessary.  It  was  about 
getting  a  living.  His  mind  was  awake  to  the  new  world 
that  had  dawned  upon  them,  and  his  inner  soul  palpitated 
with  excitement.  He  had  thought  of  various  ways  of 
making  a  living  by  means  of  foreign  craft,  and  had  hit 
on  one  for  catching  foxes.  He  had  obtained  dynamite 
or  some  other  savage  explosive,  and  he  dropped  dried 
fish  heads  along  the  hillside  with  a  small  piece  of  the 
"  medicine  "  in  the  mouth  of  each.  The  fox  or  dog  that 
came  by  and  picked  this  up  never  knew  what  happened. 
There  was  an  explosion  and  that  was  the  end  of  fish 
head  and  fox  head.  When  the  moksa  heard  of  this 
deadly  method  of  trapping  foxes,  he  warned  Kang  of  the 
danger.  He  said  he  would  be  careful  but  would  proba- 
bly have  kept  on  had  not  a  terrible  tragedy  put  an  end 
to  fox  dynamiting.  Kang's  friend,  carrying  some  of  the 
mixture,  stopped  in  a  house  thirty  miles  distant,  where 
the  missionary  had  put  up  two  nights  before.  He  was 
explaining  to  the  house  servant  and  two  others  the  na- 
ture of  the  goods  he  carried,  when  suddenly  there  was  a 
fearful  explosion  and  the  end  of  the  house  was  blown 
out.  Kang's  friend  was  no  longer  recognizable,  mangled, 
dead;  the  house  servant  was  badly  injured  but  lived. 
Fortunately  the  man  and  his  wife  were  out  at  the  time. 
Kang  wore  a  long  face  for  many  a  day.  "  No  more  dyna- 
miting ! "  said  he. 


FIREBLOWER  AND  THE  MAN  KANG   197 

But  he  had  to  live  and  he  would  try  another  decoction 
of  the  foreigner  in  a  bottle  marked  prussic  acid,  that  he 
kept  on  the  top  shelf  in  his  public  room.  "  This  is  a 
deadly  poison,"  said  a  Western  friend  who  called. 

"  Yes,  I  know  it,  but  I  keep  it  on  the  upper  shelf  out 
of  the  way  of  danger.  There  is  a  tiger  that  has  raided  a 
village  out  here :  I  mean  to  have  a  '  try  '  at  him." 

Some  nights  later  Kang  and  his  friend  had  taken  up 
their  post  in  a  hidden  nook  on  the  mountainside.  They 
had  tied  a  little  pig  to  a  tree  near  a  path  that  looked  like 
a  tiger  run.  Much  to  the  pig's  disgust  they  had  painted 
him  with  prussic  acid  and  had  left  him  a  prisoner  fast  to 
the  tree.  There  had  been  a  light  fall  of  snow  and  the  air 
was  cold  and  the  waiting  long  and  creepy,  but  sure  enough 
a  signal  came  from  the  pig,  one  or  two  frantic  squeals, 
and  then  silence.  Something  had  happened. 

They  waited  till  the  first  streaks  of  dawn  showed  them 
a  way  across  the  spur  and  the  pig  was  missing,  and  there 
was  the  huge  track  of  the  tiger.  Cautiously  they  fol- 
lowed him  over  the  hill,  down  the  valley.  Here  was  a 
sight !  The  tiger  had  been  taken  with  nausea.  On  they 
pushed  with  all  the  excitement  that  goes  with  such  a 
chase,  and  there,  at  last,  in  a  hollow,  where  he  had 
crawled  to  hide  himself  and  die,  lay  a  huge  tiger,  black 
striped,  yellow  coated.  The  carcass  was  too  heavy  to 
carry  so  they  skinned  him  and  brought  home  the 
head. 

Kang  had  had  his  "  try,"  the  great  man-eater  was  dead 
and  a  source  of  terror  removed  from  the  helpless  villages. 

The  foreign  friend  advised  Kang  against  the  use  of 
prussic  acid.  "  It  injures  the  skin  as  well,"  said  he. 

"  Then,"  said  Kang, "  will  you  kindly  loan  me  your 
breech-loading  rifle.  There  are  many  tigers  still." 


198  THE  VANGUARD 

The  friend  loaned  it,  a  Peobody-Martini  patent,  fifty 
calibre,  that  took  a  long  death-dealing  cartridge.  Ten 
shells  and  many  warnings  were  given  with  the  rifle. 
There  was  a  steel  rod  with  which  to  wipe  it  out.  It  was 
well. 

Kang  went  home  and  all  the  village  came  to  see. 
They  looked  down  the  barrel  and  up  the  breech.  Would 
he  not  shoot  it  off  just  once  and  let  them  hear,  and  there 
was  a  great  report  in  that  village.  Then  he  undertook 
to  clean  it  and  the  steel  rod  and  rag  were  rammed  in. 
So  far  they  went,  they  stopped.  We  will  now  pull  it 
back.  It  does  not  come  ?  Then  we  will  shove  it  farther 
in.  It  did  not  move.  Then  there  was  a  tug-of-war, 
Kang  at  the  rifle  and  all  hands  at  the  rod,  but  it  remained 
in  statu  quo. 

"  Look  here,"  said  Kang,  "  why  waste  all  this  energy 
when  one  more  cartridge  will  do  the  whole  thing  ?  " 

There  was  a  second  report,  not  a  clean  cut  shot  like 
number  one,  but  an  ear-bursting  "  squiz  "  that  shattered 
all  their  sensibilities.  Something  was  the  matter ;  Kang's 
face  was  singed  with  powder  and  the  gun  was  a  wreck. 
He  brought  it  home.  "  Talk  about  danger  in  dynamite 
and  prussic  acid,"  said  he,  "  nothing  equals  this  gun ; 
please  take  it  back." 

This  was  Kang  to  whom  Saw  appealed  in  his  struggle 
with  Fireblower. 

"  Let's  tell  Willis,"  said  Kang,  "  he  is  out  and  out  a 
good  moksa  and  will  know  just  what  to  do." 

The  following  day  Saw  and  Kang  started  for  Camel 
Range.  It  was  forty  miles  distant,  and  there  were  no 
conveyances.  Each  wrapped  his  feet  with  a  strip  of 
coarse  cotton  and  tied  on  his  sandals.  The  pantaloons 
were  also  tightened  well  up  towards  the  knees  so  as  to 


FIREBLOWER  AND  THE  MAN  KANG   199 

leave  play  for  a  good  step.     With  a  light  bundle  on  the 

back  and  a  long  bamboo  staff  away  they  went 

The  Oriental  knows  not  how  to  run  but  he  can  wear 
down  a  horse  by  the  persistence  of  his  walk.  Kang  and 
Saw  have  no  steel  springs  in  the  instep  of  their  feet  like 
an  American,  or  any  action  of  the  toes  to  help  them 
along.  Their  feet  come  down  without  expression,  flat  in 
the  dusty  surface,  but  they  keep  it  up  forever.  By  noon 
sixty  lee  or  twenty  miles  had  been  completed. 

"  I'll  tell  you  what  it  is,"  says  Saw.  "  Fireblower  nwksa 
knows  the  Bible  better  than  any  other  teacher  in  the 
land,  and  I'd  like  to  stay  by  him,  but  it's  hopeless." 

"  What's  the  use  of  knowing  the  Bible,"  said  Kang, 
"  if  you  don't  fix  your  insides  better  than  he  does  ?  " 

"  True,"  says  Saw,  "  but  he  told  me  all  I  know  of  the 
Way  and  I  can't  forget  him." 

"  That's  right,"  said  Kang.  "  These  Western  people 
are  peculiar,"  he  mused.  "  They  are  all  for  what  they 
call  truth,  and  nothing  for  politeness.  They  drive  right 
through  everything  and  everybody.  If  they  were  not 
converted  what  rascals  they  would  be,  worse  than  old 
Cull  [a  Chinese  Emperor,  1818  B.  c.].  Look  at  Puffc- 
nauber  and  Wintershine." 

"  There's  another  matter,"  said  Kang,  "  coming  up  be- 
fore the  church  and  Willis  has  his  mind  set  against  it  I 
learn  this  from  Han.  Willis  won't  listen,  but  it  must  go 
for  all  that" 

"  What  is  it  ?  "  asked  Saw. 

"  It's  a  great  move,"  said  Kang,  "  and  means  the  de- 
liverance of  the  country." 

"  Ah  !  ha  !  That's  good  news,"  said  Saw ;  "  tell  me 
more." 

"  Not  just  now,"  said  Kang ;  "  later." 


loo  THE  VANGUARD 

The  innkeeper  brought  in  their  food  tables,  and  they 
ate  with  spoon  and  chopsticks,  making  a  loud  supping 
noise  with  the  lips  according  to  native  custom.  When 
they  had  finished  each  rolled  over  and  with  his  head  on 
a  wooden  block  and  went  off  to  sleep. 

In  the  meantime  Fireblower  had  written  a  letter  which 
he  was  sending  Willis  by  fast  courier.  It  ran  : 

"  DEAR  WILLIS  : 

"  I  learn  from  unquestioned  authority  [his  boy 
Toothout],  that  you  are  tampering  with  my  people  and 
enticing  them  to  lawlessness.  Will  you  please  stop  it  at 
once.  The  Eighth  Command  reads,  '  Thou  shalt  not 
steal.' 

Confidently, 

FIREBLOWER." 

It  is  a  race  now  as  to  who  shall  get  first  to  Willis,  the 
two  wayfarers  or  the  courier.  It  turns  out,  however,  that 
the  former  have  four  hours'  start,  and  so  night  overtakes 
the  letter  on  its  way. 

As  was  his  custom  Willis  received  Saw  and  Kang 
kindly,  and  made  inquiries  of  peace,  as  to  their  families, 
and  Christian  health  and  prosperity. 

They  were  at  peace,  their  families  were  at  peace,  all  the 
Christians  were  at  peace,  grace  abounded,  but  yet  there 
was  one  matter  they  would  consult  him  upon  privately, 
very  privately.  It  would  make  no  difference  if  the  Dragon 
was  by,  and  Ko,  and  Pang ;  but  it  is  a  matter  of  great  im- 
portance and  they  must  speak  at  once.  Ko  and  Pang 
went  out  and  the  Dragon  sat  by  the  chink  of  the  door, 
where  he  could  hear,  but  still  preserve  the  appearance  of 
being  absent. 


FIREBLOWER  AND  THE  MAN  KANG   201 

"  It's  very  serious,"  said  Kang ;  u  it's  trouble  with  Fire- 
blower." 

Willis,  who  knew  Fireblower's  impetuosity  and  master- 
ful disposition,  and  yet  loved  him  for  his  excellent  qual- 
ities, guessed  at  once.  "  I'm  not  constituted  a  judge  in 
any  such  matter,"  said  he. 

"  Wait,"  said  they, "  till  you  hear  this ;  this  is  a  peculiar 
case.  You  know  that  Fireblower  teacher  has  a  very 
powerful  mind,  and  understands  the  Bible  well,  but  his 
insides  do  not  agree  with  the  common  run  of  men  in  the 
Land  of  Morning  Freshness.  Were  we  wise  and  gifted 
there  would  be  no  conflicting  purposes,  but  as  •  wood ' 
and  '  metal '  do  not  agree,  so  are  we  divided.  Doubtless 
there  are  others  to  whom  he  can  be  as  '  fire  '  and  '  metal,' 
or  '  wood '  and  '  water,'  but  with  us  the  elements  are 
«  fire '  and '  wood '  and  '  wood '  and  «  metal,'  which  ends  in 
mutual  destruction.  The  church  people  have  decided  to 
leave  Fireblower  and  join  you,  and  so  save  the  fragments. 
Is  it  not  well  ?  " 

Willis'  face  was  shot  through  with  disappointment  and 
distress.  Saw  perceived  it,  nudged  Kang  and  said,  "  Let's 
drop  it,  the  nioksa  does  not  favor." 

"  Remember,"  said  Willis, "  Fireblower  has  taught  you, 
and  your  hope  of  heaven  comes  through  his  message. 
Show  that  you  are  grateful  Help  him  as  he  has 
helped  you,  and  in  all  your  difficulties  make  use  of 
prayer.  I  can  have  no  hand  whatever  in  any  such 
work  as  this ;  it  would  be  displeasing  to  the  Master. 
Show  him  how  you  love  him  and  you  will  soon  win 
Fireblower." 

He  had  the  guests  well  fed  and  rested,  and  in  the  morn- 
ing sent  them  off  with  other  admonitions,  so  that  they 
promised  to  make  it  right  Ko  and  Pang  added  their 


202  THE  VANGUARD 

word  of  encouragement  as  they  accompanied  their  friends 
three  miles  on  the  way. 

A  few  hours  later  there  came  Fireblower's  letter,  which 
Willis  read  over  and  sang  out,  "  Well,  you  poor  old  Fire- 
blower  !  "  His  answer  by  return  messenger  read, "  Please 
meet  me ;  I  am  passing  Cart  Rapids  four  days  from  date, 
on  the  evening  of  the  tenth.  Be  sure  to  be  on  hand ; 
will  spend  a  day  together." 


xxvra 

WILD  BEASTS 

NOTWITHSTANDING  the  occasional  ruffles 
on  the  surface,  the  flags  still  flew  and  report 
had  it  that  a  great  movement  was  on  foot 
Already  Willis  had  examined  over  three  thousand  people 
who  applied  for  membership ;  he  had  noted  one  hundred 
and  thirty-six  chapels  built  all  of  native  funds ;  he  had 
appointed  two  hundred  and  forty  leaders,  and  had  bap- 
tized seven  hundred  and  forty -three.  The  spirit  of  her- 
alding the  message  had  taken  hold  of  every  one  of  them 
and  the  work  went  on ;  his  colaborers  were  moving  in 
here  and  there,  taking  charge. 

Ko  found  a  keen  relish  in  this  lying  in  wait  for  passers 
such  as  playing  for  cash  bits  had  never  given  him.  He 
caught  one  man  here,  and  took  him  off  into  an  old 
temple  to  tell  him  of  his  hidden  treasure.  At  another 
time  he  met  a  former  companion  in  the  street,  and  when 
the  friend  said,  "  Let's  have  a  glass,"  Ko  took  him  by  the 
hand  and  knelt  down  and  prayed  then  and  there. 

"  Away,  away,"  said  the  friend  **  Why  ever,  you  fool, 
did  you  go  and  eat  that  stuff  to  make  you  crazy? " 

"  I  have  eaten  nothing,"  said  Ko, "  but  a  new  heart 
[the  Korean  idiom  says  '  eaten'  ]  towards  God  and  you 
think  me  crazy.  I  used  to  swear  and  drink  and  gamble, 
and  frequent  vile  dens,  along  with  you,  and  you  called 
me  wise ;  now  I  shudder  at  the  thought  of  it,  and  try  to 
help  those  that  are  down,  and  am  thankful  and  happy, 
203 


204  THE   VANGUARD 

and  you  say  I've  eaten  foreign  medicine.  Think  of  it, 
Ye,  are  you  wise  to  say  so  ?  " 

The  man  was  so  impressed  with  one  night  spent  with 
Ko,  Pang  and  Willis,  that  he  went  home  next  day,  threw 
out  his  jars  of  spirit  drink  into  the  street,  so  that  the  un- 
believing part  of  the  town  said  that  he  also  was  crazy. 
Such  a  loss  of  good  liquor !  His  name  was  Ye  Yu- 
gok. 

On  the  day  following,  Willis  met  Wintershine  coming 
out  on  a  hunting  expedition,  with  guns  and  accoutrement, 
a  great  store. 

"  Hello ! "  said  Wintershine,  "  and  so  you  were  not 
murdered  by  the  town  folk  where  I  left  you.  I'll  guaran- 
tee you  skirted  the  border  and  got  away  by  some  foot- 
path." 

"  You  think  so  ?  "  said  Willis,  "  and  are  you  going  to 
rush  into  danger  again  ?  " 

"  I'm  not  afraid,"  said  Wintershine.  "  I'm  ready  this 
time,  and  there's  a  tiger  been  sighted  out  here  in  the  Pine 
Mountains.  By  the  way,  I  saw  Fireblower,  and  he  says 
you  have  been  sheep-stealing.  That's  the  way  you  pious 
missionaries  do,"  said  Wintershine  with  a  laugh.  "  I've 
seen  this  missionary  business  all  the  world  over,  and  it's 
the  same  everywhere." 

"  I'm  sorry  you  think  so,"  said  Willis,  "  and  I  don't 
suppose  any  statement  of  mine  would  help  you  to  a 
change  of  mind." 

"  No,"  said  Wintershine,  "  facts  are  facts,  and  to  be 
frank  with  you  I  may  say  I  have  just  written  home  to  a 
leading  journal,  showing  up  the  whole  system,  and  advo- 
cating the  government's  taking  hold  and  putting  a  stop  to 
it.  I'll  admit  the  Catholics  do  do  good,  but  this  Prot- 
estant missionary  effort  with  its  denominations  is  a  dis- 


WILD  BEASTS  205 

grace.  Besides,  these  people  are  a  lot  of  cowards  and 
fools  and  will  never  make  Christians  anyway." 

At  this  point  they  were  accosted  by  a  dishevelled 
stranger  who  stammered  out  that  his  father  had  been 
carried  off  that  morning  and  eaten  by  a  tiger ;  they  had 
found  his  skull  and  clothing  near  the  pines  yonder; 
would  not  the  "  great  men "  \fa-in\  turn  aside  and  take 
vengeance  for  him. 

The  man  was  half  crazed  with  excitement.  His  father 
was  dead  and  he  should  have  been  in  sackcloth  and  ashes 
mourning,  but  he  said  "not  so"  till  he  had  faced  his 
enemy  and  given  rest  to  his  father's  ghost 

Wintershine  could  not  understand  what  it  meant,  till 
Willis  told  him,  being,  as  he  said,  himself,  "  no  hand  at 
the  language." 

"This  looks  serious,"  said  Wintershine;  "shall  we 
try?" 

"  I'm  not  a  tiger-hunter,"  said  Willis,  "  but  you  are ; 
it's  for  you  to  say." 

Wintershine  hesitated  and  at  last  said  he  would  be 
grateful  if  Willis  would  come  too,  and  help  him  to 
understand  the  facts. 

The  poor  towsy-headed  man  begged  so,  and  the 
Dragon  added  his  word,  that  at  last,  Willis  consented 
and  the  party  followed  the  man  to  his  home. 

It  was  a  pitiful  story  that  he  told  about  his  father,  an 
old  man  of  seventy-two.  It  had  been  his  custom  to  get 
up  early  in  the  morning,  open  the  front  gate,  bring  in  a 
bundle  of  brushwood,  and  set  the  fires  going,  and  then 
rouse  the  other  members  of  the  family,  but  this  morning 
they  had  awakened  of  themselves  late.  The  gate  was 
wide  open  and  the  kitchen  cold ;  there  had  been  no  fire 
and  there  was  no  sign  of  the  grandfather. 


206  THE   VANGUARD 

Startled  by  appearances,  the  two  sons  had  rushed 
about  shouting,  till  one  of  them  came  on  his  father's 
girdle-string,  with  pocket  attached.  No  mistake,  here 
were  the  flint  and  steel  that  he  carried.  They  followed 
from  this  point  across  the  rice-fields,  to  where,  amid 
blood  and  torn  rags,  they  found  all  that  was  left  of  their 
revered  sire. 

When  death  visits  the  head  of  a  household,  Korean 
custom  requires  the  sons  to  unfasten  the  topknot,  pull 
down  the  hair,  and  sit  desolate,  wailing,  "  I-go  !  I-go !  " 
but  in  this  case  they  did  not  do  so.  Instead  they  brushed 
their  hair  and  swore  vengeance.  Only  after  their  wrath 
had  been  appeased  would  they  give  vent  to  their  sorrow. 

They  had  succeeded  in  raising  three  hundred  yang 
and  had  obtained  the  services  of  three  tiger-hunters,  two 
armed  with  flint-lock  guns,  and  one,  an  old  spearman. 
They  had  come,  looked  over  the  ground,  and  laid  their 
plans  for  the  morrow,  and  here  the  gods  had  favored  and 
brought  the  Western  tiger  hunter  with  his  repeating- 
rifle  as  well. 

That  night  there  was  intense  excitement,  so  that  even 
the  Doctrine  was  forgotten.  It  gave  Willis  a  welcome 
rest,  for  here,  Wintershine  was  the  centre  of  attraction. 
How  carefully  he  polished  and  laid  out  his  weapons. 
Which  should  he  use?  The  dum-dum  bullets  or  the 
American  rifle  with  explosive  balls.  It  was  rather 
heavier,  he  would  try  it.  He  saw  the  equipment  of  the 
Korean,  pitiable  to  behold,  two  rusty  guns,  fitted  with  a 
rope  fuse  and  some  powder  in  the  pan.  "  What  fools  !  " 
said  Wintershine.  Here  too  was  the  old  spearman, 
knotted  and  gnarled,  unwashed  for  twenty  years,  and  with 
a  shaft  that  might  have  come  down  from  the  Mongol 
conquest. 


WILD  BEASTS  207 

Early  next  morning  they  moved  out  with  forty  and 
more  beaters  from  the  town.  The  old  spearman  said  that 
the  tiger  was  in  yonder  grove.  "  He  sleeps  yet  after 
the  fill  he  has  had."  His  counsel  was  to  place  themselves 
under  the  shadows  of  some  trees,  near  where  the  path  led, 
and  let  the  beaters  scatter  out  on  the  other  side.  The 
hunters  were  wholly  exposed  in  the  position  he  had 
chosen,  and  it  seemed  rash  to  Wintershine.  "  But  you 
must  get  close  up,"  said  the  spearman,  "  or  the  danger 
will  increase  tenfold." 

"  No,"  said  Wintershine,  "I  am  a  dead  shot  and  shall 
post  myself  off  a  bit  on  that  rock  yonder,  round  the 
curve." 

"  All  right,"  said  the  spearman,  "  do  as  you  please,  our 
place  is  here." 

Wintershine  could  not  see  the  sense  of  standing  right 
in  the  path  and  waiting  for  the  tiger  to  walk  up  to  him. 
Even  with  superior  weapons  it  was  not  wise,  so  he  pulled 
out  and  lay  on  the  rock,  well  lifted  up,  but  out  of  view  of 
the  first  opening  in  the  pines.  He  had  either  to  choose 
the  rock  and  safety  or  stand  by  the  path  and  risk  a 
header  from  the  wild  beast,  so  he  chose  the  former. 

"  How  do  you  know  he'll  come  this  way  ?  "  asked  Win- 
tershine, somewhat  pale  looking;  "  he  may  take  up  that 
hill  yonder." 

"  Not  a  bit  of  it,"  said  the  old  spearman ;  "  the  tiger  is 
soft-footed  and  likes  a  path ;  he'll  come  straight  for  us." 

On  a  signal  the  beaters  began.  Ko  and  the  Dragon 
were  posted  off  on  a  point  where  they  could  see. 

After  ten  minutes,  as  expected,  there  came  crawling 
out  of  the  pines  a  male  tiger,  his  eyes  aflame,  his  back 
bowed  down,  and  his  tail  whipping.  He  had  been  dis- 
turbed and  was  not  pleased.  Along  the  path  he  came  at 


208  THE  VANGUARD 

an  easy  pace  straight  for  the  hunters.  There  was  a  flash, 
a  report,  a  fierce  growl,  a  wild  leap  and  another  flash,  and 
one  hunter  had  gone  crumpled  up  over  the  hill.  The 
second  shot  had  wounded  the  tiger  and  he  was  on  to  the 
spearman  with  open  mouth.  Willis  had  seen  old  stiff 
legged  fellows  with  a  trident  catch  the  flash  of  a  passing 
salmon,  and  pin  him  square  in  the  middle,  quick  as  light- 
ning, so  it  was  with  the  twisted  shaggy  spearman.  With  a 
lunge  he  caught  the  beast  square  in  the  throat,  drove  the 
shaft  in  and  locked  his  arm  round  a  tree.  It  was  a  mighty 
struggle.  The  old  hunter's  eye  blazed  with  fire  and  his 
jaw  closed  with  the  grip  of  death.  He  had  been  in  the 
ring  before,  and  had  never  been  beaten.  One  little 
while  would  settle  it  if  he  could  hold  on,  for  the  gush 
of  blood  was  helping  him.  What  would  not  America 
give  to  see  so  fierce  a  fight  ?  The  man  that  had  as  steady 
a  nerve,  as  quick  an  eye,  and  as  strong  a  hand,  might 
command  his  thousands,  but  the  poor  old  spearman  had 
not  two  suits  of  clothes,  and  only  a  few  brass  pieces  in 
his  girdle-bag. 

Yes,  the  man-eater  was  giving  way,  and  he  had  him 
now,  but  the  tax  was  fearful.  Then  came  a  ringing  shot 
from  Wintershine,  and  the  animal  rolled  over  and  kicked 
his  last. 

The  orphaned  sons  were  on  to  the  spoil  in  an  instant. 
They  ripped  down  the  front  of  the  skin,  dug  out  the  liver, 
and  bit  into  it  with  their  teeth,  till  their  faces  were 
smeared  with  blood.  Now  that  vengeance  was  satisfied 
and  their  father's  ghost  appeased  they  would  let  down 
their  hair  and  mourn  as  children  ought  to. 

One  hunter  had  been  killed,  and  the  old  spearman's 
eyes  looked  dazed  upon  him.  The  blow  of  the  tiger's 
paw  had  done  it,  and  there  was  no  return  of  life. 


WILD  BEASTS  209 

Wintershine  claimed  the  carcass ;  he  had  shot  the  ani- 
mal and  it  was  his  by  right  of  superior  skill 

"  Give  it  to  him,"  said  the  old  tiger-hunter, "  why  should 
we  quarrel  when  my  friend  lies  dead  ! "  So  it  came  about 
that  Wintershine  had  the  carcass  carried  off  on  a  long  pole 
by  some  twenty  men.  The  news  was  heralded  to  his 
good  wife,  and  he  entered  his  plantation  in  triumph,  hav- 
ing bagged  his  tiger. 


XXIX 

THE  SMASH  OF  FIREBLOWER 

WILLIS  turned  away  from  the  tiger  town  with  its 
history,and  journeyed  off  to  meet  other  groups 
and  other  faces.  The  day  brought  him  out 
through  the  hills  to  the  long  sweep  of  sea,  which  he  en- 
joyed so  much,  but  without  words  to  express  it.  Here 
and  there  were  the  familiar  sails  and  the  islands  dotting 
the  distance.  The  sea  talked  to  him  of  home,  it  rested 
him,  and  from  its  cool  waters  came  the  breath  of  invita- 
tion. 

On  a  projecting  point,  under  a  shady  pine,  he  sat  down 
to  ponder  and  to  look  and  listen.  Beyond  its  blue 
distance  voices  were  calling.  Away  off  on  the  dim  line 
were  the  home  lands  and  the  friends  he  loved.  Did  she 
still  live  just  there  over  the  sea  ?  Was  her  heart  true  or 
had  she  given  it  to  another  ?  Should  he  cast  off  and 
sail  out  and  settle  his  question  and  the  never-ending  sad- 
ness ?  There  were  the  schooners  with  white  sails  drop- 
ping away.  Why  should  he  not  leave  his  burdens  and 
problems  to  fade  into  the  distance,  and  let  the  pictures  in 
his  soul  come  true  ? 

But  the  Dragon  had  overtaken  him,  and  Yap,  and  the 
jingling  of  the  horse  bells ;  he  must  move  on  down  the 
roadway  that  led  to  the  shore.  It  was  familiar  ground 
and  a  foot-path  of  former  days.  A  happy  day  he  spent 
among  the  fisher  folk  and  early  on  the  following  morn- 
ing he  was  on  his  way  once  more.  He  was  to  meet  Fire- 
210 


THE  SMASH  OF  FIREBLOWER  211 

blower  to-day  by  Cart  Rapids.  Towards  the  close  of  the 
afternoon,  there  came  out  to  meet  him  none  other  than 
Fireblower  himself.  He  had  been  waiting  all  day  and 
was  wearied  to  death ;  his  back  bristled,  and  his  spirit 
was  blowing  off  wrath. 

"  Why  have  you  kept  me  waiting  all  these  ages  ?  My 
patience  to  begin  with  was  done  out  with  you  without 
this  extra  annoyance." 

"  Glad  to  see  you,"  said  Willis.  "  Thanks  for  coming. 
I  think  I  mentioned  the  evening  of  the  tenth,  did  I  not  ?  " 

"  Never,"  said  Fireblower,  '•  you  talked  of  spending 
the  day.  Let  me  see."  He  took  Willis'  note  from  his 
pocket  and  looked  it  over.  "  Yes,  you  did.  Well  now 
I  was  mistaken,  and  here  I  have  been  abusing  you  to 
these  natives  all  day,  and  saying  you  did  not  keep  your 
word.  I'll  take  that  back."  Fireblower  then  told  the 
loafers  and  others  standing  by  that  he  had  made  a  mis- 
take and  done  badly,  in  contending  that  Willis  did  not 
keep  his  word.  "  There's  nothing  in  it  after  all." 

To  explain  matters  thus  to  an  Oriental  only  fixes  him 
firmer  than  ever  in  his  first  conviction.  Willis  knew  it, 
if  Fireblower  did  not 

"  While  you  are  making  the  explanation,"  said  Willis, 
"  please  say  that  you  made  a  mistake  also  in  thinking  I 
stole  sheep  from  you." 

"  No,  you  don't  come  that  kind  of  game  now,"  said 
Fireblower.  "  I  caught  you  squarely  in  the  matter." 

"  Then  let's  have  the  witnesses,"  said  Willis,  "  and  get 
the  air  cleared." 

"  All  right,"  said  Fireblower.  "  Toothout !  "  he  sang  at 
the  top  of  his  voice. 

Toothout  was  Fireblower's  boy,  and  he  answered  from 
the  kitchen,  "  Yea-a-a  !  " 


212  THE   VANGUARD 

"  Eree-onera  !  "     (Come  here  !)  called  Fireblower. 

Toothout,  a  poor  ragged-faced  fellow,  of  seventeen, 
made  his  appearance. 

"  Say,  didn't  you  tell  me  that  Willis  moksa  was  trying 
to  take  my  people  ?  " 

Toothout,  seeing  himself  summoned  to  a  court  of  in- 
quiry, was  somewhat  staggered.  The  Dragon  was  look- 
ing past  the  corner.  "  If  he  says  my  moksa  wanted  to 
steal  his  good-for-nothing  people,  I'll  lick  him  as  soon  as 
he  leaves  the  room,"  said  the  Dragon.  "  It  isn't  religion 
to  do  it  I  know,  but  to  say  that  of  our  moksa  is  more 
than  I'll  stand." 

"  No,"  said  Toothout,  "  I  never  said  so." 

"  Good  stuff,"  said  the  Dragon,  under  his  breath. 

"  Then  what  did  you  say?  Out  with  it  now  and  don't 
lie." 

"  I  said  the  meeting  decided  to  ask  Willis  moksa  to  let 
them  join  his  meeting-house." 

"  What  meeting  ?  " 

"  Why,  our  meeting,  of  course." 

"  What  meeting-house  ?  " 

"  Willis'  meeting-house." 

"  But  you  stated  that  Willis  moksa  had  asked  them  to 
come." 

"  Never,"  said  Toothout,  and  the  Dragon  chuckled.  "  If 
the  teacher  will  please  consider,  he  will  know  I  didn't 
say  so,  for  I  said  they  were  going  next  day  to  ask  Willis 
moksa  if  he  would  take  them.  They  needn't  ask  if  they 
know." 

"  What,  you  rascal,  you  mean  to  say  now  that  Willis 
moksa  didn't  know  anything  about  it,  and  never  gave 
any  invitation  ?  " 

"  Of  course  he  didn't  know,  and  of  course  he  gave  no 


THE   SMASH  OF  FIREBLOWER  213 

invitation,  and  when  the  people  went  to  see  him,  he  said 
it  would  never  do,  and  they  must  go  back  at  once  and 
show  that  they  were  sorry  for  what  they  had  done." 

"  Toothout !  "  roared  Fireblower,  "  as  sure  as  you  live, 
somebody  is  lying." 

"  No,"  said  Toothout,  "  no  man  lie,  master  he  very 
angry,  he  no  understand." 

The  Dragon  decided  to  give  Toothout  a  new  ribbon 
for  his  hair,  that  he  had  bought  for  himself,  but  had  not 
used.  "  He's  a  north  boy  from  my  county,  where  they 
tell  the  truth  ;  that  explains  it,"  said  the  Dragon.  Thus 
it  ended,  and  there  were  no  further  witnesses. 

"  Now,  Fireblower,"  said  Willis, "  it's  my  turn.  I  want 
to  say  a  word  to  you.  In  your  impatience,  you  didn't 
even  read  my  letter  carefully,  and  so  told  all  the  people 
here  that  I  did  not  keep  my  word,  and  have  put  a  brand 
on  three  thousand  Christians  and  more  in  this  country 
who  call  me  teacher.  You  tried  to  take  it  back  with  the 
town  people,  which  only  makes  matters  worse  here  in  the 
East,  and  now  the  story  will  go  on  as  you  have  told  it. 

"  Again,  in  your  impatience,  you  imagined  that  I  was 
trying  to  lead  your  people  away,  and  you  didn't  take 
even  time  to  inquire,  but  wrote  me  that  you  had  proof. 
You  told  the  Koreans  also  and  the  man  Wintershine, 
who  has  published  it  abroad,  and  laughs  to  think  of  the 
methods  of  missionaries.  You  cannot  make  it  right  now 
even  though  you  desire ;  the  mischief  is  done  and  will  re- 
main. It  explains  your  trouble  with  your  own  people 
and  all  your  other  failures.  It  takes  some  patience  to 
train  a  dog,  or  a  horse.  It  takes  a  world  of  patience  to 
deal  successfully  with  a  race  of  humanity.  My  advice, 
Fireblower,  is  this,  If  God  doesn't  give  you  grace  to  be 
patient,  give  it  up.  You  know  your  Bible,  you  have 


2i4  THE  VANGUARD 

sound  views  as  to  faith,  you  have  a  kind  heart,  you  have 
practical  knowledge,  which  many  missionaries  lack,  but 
you  have  no  patience  and  consequently  other  gifts  are 
worthless." 

Fireblower  was  thunderstruck ;  no  man  had  ever  dared 
to  speak  so ;  he  was  independent  and  rejoiced  in  it. 
There  were  no  mission  boards  or  fellow-workers  to  hold 
him  in  with  bit  and  bridle.  He  was  free  and  yet  here 
was  Willis  reading  the  law  to  him.  The  desolate  face  of 
Toothout  came  up  before  him,  and  his  discontented  peo- 
ple. Could  there  be  truth  in  somebody  else's  opinion 
beside  his  own  ?  He  would  think  it  over.  "  Let's  drop 
it,"  he  said,  and  for  the  remainder  of  the  evening  all  went 
smoothly.  Willis  could  see,  however,  that  he  hadn't  yet 
realized  his  shortcomings  and  he  feared  for  him. 

It  was  a  fiery  law  that  Fireblower  read  to  his  people  on 
their  return  from  Willis.  "  The  doors  of  the  chapel  are 
locked,"  said  he,  "  till  you  sufficiently  show  your  re- 
pentance." 

"  But,"  said  Kang  and  Saw, "  we  have  built  the  chapel, 
it  is  ours,  why  should  you  lock  it  ?  " 

"  Nothing  is  yours,"  said  Fireblower;  "  you  are  poor, 
and  miserable,  and  blind,  and  naked,  and  you  don't  know 
it,"  and  he  bundled  them  out  of  his  presence.  "  When 
you  repent,"  said  he,  "  then  we  can  talk  together,  not 
before." 

It  was  a  desperate  case.  •'  My  breath  is  stifled  in  me," 
said  Saw. 

"  His  words  are  no  words  for  a  moksa"  said  Kang, 
"  and  I  am  done  with  him.  It  is  the  most  exasperating 
affair  (poon-han-eel}  that  I  have  ever  known."  They 
decided  to  call  a  meeting  that  evening  in  Choo's  house 
away  at  the  other  end  of  the  town,  and  to  make  sure 


THE  SMASH  OF  FIREBLOWER  215 

that  Toothout  was  not  present.  There  were  some  seven- 
teen who  came,  and  they  read  a  few  veises  from  the  Tes- 
tament and  prayed,  then  the  discussion  began. 

"  This  affair  with  the  teacher  has  stopped  our  breath 
and  we  are  dead,"  said  Saw.  "  What  shall  we  do  to 
live?" 

There  was  silence  for  a  few  minutes.  "  I  think  we'd 
better  go  back  and  say  we  did  badly,"  said  one. 

"  Badly?    What  did  we  do?  "  asked  Kang  angrily. 

«  We  didn't  do  anything,  but  just  say  it  anyway  and 
he  will  be  satisfied,  and  we'll  have  peace  and  be  blessed." 

•  Not  a  bit  of  it,"  sounded  out  three  or  four  voices. 
**  What  shall  we  do  to  live  ?  "  again  inquired  Saw. 
"  Join  the  Roman  Catholics,"  said  Kang. 

"What?  with  all  you  know  about  them  and  the 
Wickedness  of  God." 

"  What  do  I  know  ?  "  asked  Kang.  "  They  are  Chris- 
tians too,  and  they  give  far  more  help  in  this  world  than 
the  Protestants." 

"  But  they  observe  ten  thousand  things  that  don't  exist 
in  the  Bible,"  said  Saw. 

"  Never  mind  about  that,  if  only  their  hearts  are  right. 
There's  Fireblower,  he  knows  all  about  the  Bible,  and  it 
hasn't  fixed  his  inside  at  alL" 

"  No,"  said  Saw,  "  no  Catholics  for  me ;  they  are  darker 
than  the  heathen." 

But  Saw  was  voted  down,  and  a  deputation  was  ap- 
pointed to  wait  on  the  priest.  Saw  washed  his  hands  of 
the  af&ir  and  left  the  meeting. 

The  deputation  was  admitted  most  guardedly. 

«  What  do  you  want  ?  " 

*  To  see  the  holy  father"  (sin-foo). 
«  Why  see  the  most  holy  father  ?  " 


216  THE  VANGUARD 

"  To  join  his  Church ;  we  are  tired  of  the  Protes- 
tants." 

"  Protestants  !  Heretics  you  mean  ;  are  you  heretics  ?  " 
(yul-kyo). 

"  Yes,  but  we  desire  to  be  Catholics." 

They  were  kept  waiting  long,  and  then  at  last  as  in 
official  Yamens  there  was  a  weird  call,  and  the  side  gate, 
the  little  humble  entrance,  opened,  and  in  passed  Kang 
and  his  friends. 

"  Whence  have  you  fellows  come  ?  "  asked  the  priest, 
using  the  lowest  language. 

"  From  the  heretic  chapel  of  Fireblower,  your  holiness." 

"  Ah !   and  what  are  you  after  ?  " 

"  To  join  the  holy  father's  church." 

"  So !     That  is  good ;  there  is  no  salvation  elsewhere." 

"  Will  you  take  us  then  ?  "  asked  Kang. 

"  Let  me  see,"  said  the  father.  "  Whose  house  is  that 
where  you  congregate  ?  " 

"  Ours,"  said  Kang. 

"  I'm  afraid  we  can't  take  you.  You  would  have  to 
be  baptized  afresh,  and  purified,  and  cleansed,  and  set 
free  from  the  errors  you  have  picked  up  and  mass  and 
penance  would  cost  much." 

"  We  are  most  willing,"  said  Saw.  "  Is  there  no 
hope  ?  " 

"  Of  course  you  are  willing,  but  I'm  afraid  it  can't  be 
done.  Let  me  see.  If  you'll  hand  over  your  meeting 
house,  we'll  cleanse  it  and  set  up  the  true  worship  and 
then  you  may." 

"  These  are  most  excellent  words  that  your  holiness 
says.  We  are  willing  to  hand  it  over,  but  Fireblower  has 
the  deeds." 

"  The  deeds  ?    Never  mind  the  deeds,"  said  the  priest. 


THE  SMASH  OF  FIREBLOWER  217 

"  Deeds  in  Korea  don't  count ;  if  the  owners  are  willing, 
that  is  sufficient." 

"  We  are  most  willing,  and  offer  our  united  thanks." 

The  awe-inspiring  surroundings  of  the  priest  had 
worked  like  a  charm.  Here  was  no  simple  Protestant 
pastor,  but  a  mighty  official  such  as  the  Far  East  likes  to 
cringe  under.  They  were  fixed  by  his  spell  and  so  the 
church  was  taken  over,  cleansed,  and  in  a  few  days  the 
windows  were  darkened,  candles  were  burning,  and  a 
tawdry  image  of  the  Virgin  looked  down  upon  them. 

"  What  ?  "  says  Fireblower.  "  Taken  over  the  church  ? 
Never !  I  have  the  deeds." 

"  But,"  says  Toothout,  "  they  are  worshipping  there 
now,  and  the  priest  is  in  charge." 

Fireblower's  first  impulse  was  to  take  a  club  and 
clear  out  the  place,  but  in  the  meantime  he  had  had  his 
talk  with  Willis  and  that  caused  him  to  hesitate.  "  I'll 
take  the  matter  to  the  Legation,"  roared  he,  "  and  make 
an  example  of  this  highway  robbery." 

News  of  this  reached  Willis  and  made  his  heart  sick. 
He  knew  that  time  would  intensify  the  matter,  and  render 
it,  if  possible,  more  distressing  than  it  really  was.  The 
rumor  would  spread  and  would  soon  be  interpreted  as 
the  whole  Protestant  Church  that  had  gone  over  to  the 
Roman  Catholics,  while  Fireblower  would  stir  up  the 
flames,  and  the  entire  body  of  Christians  would  be 
scorched  by  it.  There  was  a  sick,  gnawing,  feeling  at 
Willis'  heart,  as  he  realized  just  what  had  come  to  pass. 
The  hills  looked  uninviting,  and  the  landscape  was  dark- 
ened. His  fellow-travellers  Ko,  Pang,  the  Dragon,  Yap, 
all  of  them  journeyed  under  a  cloud,  and  the  light  and 
joy  of  their  footsteps  had  departed. 

"  I've  been  thinking,"  said  Ko,  "  that  the  Lord's  work 


218  THE   VANGUARD 

looked  pretty  discouraging  just  about  the  time  He  was 
crucified,  and  yet  as  I  think  it  over  that  turned  out  to  be 
the  greatest  time  in  His  pilgrimage.  We'd  give  up  any 
other  time  but  that.  I  believe  it  is  best  not  to  feel  bad, 
but  to  remember  that  God  is  wise  and  that  He  is 
watching." 

Willis  accepted  the  encouragement  though  his  heart 
still  ached  for  poor  old  stormy  Fireblower,  whose  years 
of  labor  were  so  unexpectedly  blasted.  Of  course  these 
people  might  still  be  Christians  and  Catholics  at  the  same 
time,  but  the  Catholic  Church,  as  he  knew  it  in  Korea, 
had  a  bad  flavor  of  ignorance  and  superstition.  Never- 
theless he  must  lift  up  his  heart  and  walk  on,  the  juniper 
tree  grew  on  the  road  to  Sinai,  not  on  the  way  to  Jeru- 
salem. Along  the  path  that  he  journeyed  there  were  a 
thousand  evidences  of  victory,  let  him  be  thankful  for 
these. 


XXX 

THE  TOK-NEEPS 

IT  was  a  hearty  welcome  that  Wfllis  got  on  his 
entrance  once  more  to  the  city  of  Ping-yang.  Even 
the  old  market  men,  who  never  thought  of  believing 
were  glad  to  see  him.  He  was  a  good  omen  to  them, 
and  they  hailed  with  joy  his  return  home  in  peace.  His 
pfla"ng  the  door  and  casting  a  shadow  meant  luck  for 
the  day.  Instead  of  his  being  a  green-eyed,  light-haired 
ogre,  who  loved  to  devour  Korean  children,  he  was  to 
them  a  messenger  of  good-will,  whose  presence  had  some- 
thing to  do  with  the  prosperity  of  the  city.  Along  the 
streets  he  made  his  triumphal  entry.  There  were  Chris- 
tians at  every  corner,  and  also  here  and  there  dotting  the 
midway,  all  out  to  greet  him.  He  saw  and  felt  that  he  was 
king,  king  over  an  empire  of  hearts,  the  best  of  all  king- 
doms. The  rewards  had  come  for  his  years  of  service, 
and  he  thought  of  the  text,  "  No  man  hath  left  father, 
mother,  sisters  or  brothers,  but  shall  receive  in  this  life 
also  a  hundredfold."  Here  were  his  mothers,  toothless 
and  almond-eyed,  but  they  loved  him;  here  were  his 
sisters,  not  pretty,  and  tall,  and  graceful,  like  one 
who  still  lived  in  his  dreams  and  fancies,  but  grateful, 
who  felt  that  in  Willis  and  his  colaborers  was  safety, 
pity,  and  consideration,  for  their  helpless  and  degraded 
lot ;  here  were  his  fathers,  old  yellow  faced  men,  who 
hung  on  his  words,  who  looked  for  him  to  sit  close  by 
when  life  faded,  and  to  see  them  buried  when  they  had 
219 


220  THE  VANGUARD 

gone  home ;  here  were  his  brothers,  young  men  of  the 
East,  who  felt  the  force  of  his  character  and  intellect  and 
who  were  willing  in  all  but  the  rarest  case,  to  follow  his 
lead  and  make  him  their  model. 

In  the  meantime  in  the  old  gray  capital,  that  lies  be- 
tween the  hills,  there  were  forces  at  work  that  were 
shortly  to  be  feared.  Men  of  influence  had  gone 
West  to  England  and  America.  Some  had  graduated 
from  colleges  there  and  had  come  back  with  hair  close- 
cropped,  and  minds  bristling  with  new  and  dangerous 
intentions.  They  would,  in  what  way  we  must  wait  to 
see,  overturn  the  whole  framework  of  government  and 
inaugurate  a  new  regime.  There  were  three  leaders  to 
the  movement,  Dr.  Jay  and  Messrs.  Chee  and  Hong,  all 
Koreans.  Jay  and  Chee  had  been  absent  for  ten  years, 
and  spoke  English  fluently.  The  former  was  a  political 
offender  and  had  had  sentence  of  death  hanging  over 
him  for  nearly  a  decade,  till  he  became  a  naturalized 
citizen  of  another  country,  and  beyond  the  reach  of 
Korean  law.  He  was  intelligent,  wide-awake,  ambi- 
tious, and  hated  the  old  rule  that  had  tried  to  "  knife " 
him  for  his  attempt  at  reform.  He  wore  Western  clothes 
and  talked  his  native  tongue  with  the  energy  and  pro- 
pulsion of  a  foreigner.  His  face  was  ornamented  by  a 
pair  of  glasses,  without  rims,  gold-bridged  and  hooked 
back  of  the  ears.  There  was  a  force  and  fire  about  him 
altogether  unoriental  that  set  things  ablaze.  He  had 
caught  a  new  spirit  in  the  Western  world,  where  he  had 
studied  medicine  and  graduated  high  in  his  class,  and  he 
was  here  now  to  diagnose  the  malady  that  infected  his 
native  land,  and  to  go  at  it  with  dosing  and  external 
application,  or  if  necessary,  the  scalpel  and  lance. 

He  was  a  professing  Christian  as  well,  had  been  bap- 


THE  TOK-NEEPS  221 

tized  abroad,  by  some  one  or  other,  so  that  the  eyes  of 
the  Church  were  on  him.  He  went  about  the  tity  under 
escort  of  a  guard,  and  the  glamour  that  attended  him 
awed  the  people  and  alarmed  the  King.  What  would 
not  such  a  story  as  his  do  ? — a  bloody  assassination,  a 
wild  race  for  life,  an  escape  under  hatches  whDe  the  sol- 
diers i  LuiMifnl  overhead,  a  ten  yuus  ^til^  in  barbarian 
lands,  a  record  of  high  achievement  in  Western  science. 
These  were  some  of  die  mysteries  associated  with  his 
name.  He  had  come  home  now  to  undertake  reform, 
and  feeling  that  a  great  nation  was  back  of  him,  he 
waBrH  into  the  presence  of  the  King  as  coolly  as  he 
would  to  see  a  sick  patient.  Other  Koreans  must  take 
off  their  glasses,  and  bow,  and  call  themselves  names,  and 
grovel  in  the  dust  before  His  Majesty.  Jay  stepped  for- 
ward in  white  shirt  front  and  evening  dress,  made  his 
obeisance,  and  then  stood  erect.  The  King  smiled,  asked  if 
he  was  well,  said  how  delighted  he  was  to  see  him,  for- 
getting that  when  he  saw  this  tall  young  man  last,  he  had 
screamed  for  his  life — •"  so  delighted  to  see  you,"  said  His 
Majesty,  while  he  muttered  something  about  eyes  that 
dared  look  with  glasses  on  them. 

Mr.  Chee  had  also  been  educated  abroad;  he  was  a  man 
of  culture,  of  high  resolve  and  motive,  and  there  was  no 
political  stigma  on  nim1  nervous,  silk  fibred,  with  refined 
voice  and  keen  eye.  His  expiessive  face  and  features 
gave  one  a  thrill  of  surprise  when  he  rose  to  speak  in  a 
public  assembly.  He  had  been  governor  of  the  capital, 
and  his  record  wm  fanMrr  Political  plunder  went  on 
about  him,  but  his  hands  were  dean.  His  heart  sickened 
at  the  hopelessness  of  his  native  land. 

Keen  and  bright  eyed  these  two  gathered  round  them 
a  few  of  the  hopeful  young  men  of  Seoul,  which  included 


222  THE  VANGUARD 

Hong  the  Christian  and  many  of  his  friends.  They  had 
adopted  the  tract  and  leaflet  plan  that  had  proven  so 
helpful  to  Willis,  and  their  press  turned  out  a  weekly 
sheet,  that  went  on  its  way  to  the  city  and  the  land. 
They  were  passed,  through  Hong's  influence,  into  the 
homes  of  the  Christians,  and  there  was  a  great  stirring 
among  powers  temporal  and  spiritual. 

«  What  are  these  people  doing  ?  "  inquired  His  Majesty. 

"  They  are  holding  Tok-neep  meetings,"  said  the  prime 
minister. 

"  Tok-neep  !    What  does  that  mean  ?  " 

"  It  means  the  tok  of  «  alone  '  and  neep  of '  stand  up ' 
to  stand  alone  or  independence." 

"  Nonsense !  Such  a  word,  never  heard  of  it  in  the 
classics.  What  are  they  after?"  inquired  His  Majesty. 
"  If  it's  money  they  can't  have  it,  nor  office  either.  Go 
and  tell  them  to  stop  it  at  once." 

A  message  came  from  the  government  commanding 
Jay  and  Chee  to  stop  it,  and  stop  it  at  once. 

"  Stop  what  ?  "  inquired  Jay. 

"  Oh,  this  Tok-neep" 

"  Why,  I  thought  Tok-neep  was  a  good  thing,  and  that 
His  Majesty  had  become  emperor  on  the  score  of  it." 

"  Stop  it,"  says  the  prime  minister.  "  I  don't  know 
just  what  it  is,  but  His  Majesty  doesn't  like  it,  so  please 
quit  it  at  once." 

Jay  then  read  the  prime  minister  a  lecture,  exhorting 
him  to  give  up  his  own  evil  way  of  living,  and  to  learn 
and  do  something  to  help  his  country.  The  old  minister 
with  his  round  stomach  and  big  rolling  eyes,  would  have 
had  Jay  beheaded,  drawn  and  quartered,  and  a  piece  of 
him  sent  to  every  hamlet  in  the  empire,  if  the  thoughts 
of  his  heart  had  come  to  pass.  Jay  and  Chee,  however, 


THE  TOK-NEEPS  223 

paid  no  attention,  but  pushed  on,  their  intention  being  to 
sow  die  land  with  their  ideas  of  the  rights  of  the  indi- 
vidual citizen,  and  to  get  a  conflagration  started  that 
would  do  in  a  small  way,  what  tile  French  Revolution 
did  with  its  yelk  and  groans  and  gunpowder. 

These  gatherings  were  watched  and  spies  came  in  to 
listen  and  report  what  had  gone  on. 

Once  the  prime  minister  called  the  reporting  spy 
to  him  and  inquired,  "What  did  they  do  at  that 
meeting?" 

"Oh,  they  did  lots  of  things,"  said  the  reporter. 
"  First  the  head  man  said,  '  The  meeting  will  please  come 
to  order.'  " 

"  Ah,  ha  !  "  said  the  prime  minister.  "  Did  you  ever 
hear  the  like  of  that!  Then  what?" 

-  Why,  then,  after  they  had  talked  a  while,  the  head 
man  said,  '  The  ayes  appear  to  have  it,  the  ayes  have  it.'  " 

•  No,"  said  the  prime  minister.     "  Did  he  say  that  ? 
And  what  mischief  do  you  think  that  means  ?  " 

"  I  don't  know,"  said  die  spy,  "  but  everybody  clapped 
their  hands." 

"  I  see,"  said  the  minister.  "  Beating  the  hands  means 
down  with  the  government,  the  rascals,  well  see  to  them." 
And  so  a  watch  was  put  on  all  the  meetings  of  the  Inde- 


Jay  ordered  that  tiiey  be  made  as  public  as  possible, 
and  government  officials  be  invited  to  attend.  This  took 
away  half  of  die  interest  diat  die  prime  minister  felt  in 
it,  for  if  there  is  anything  the  Far  East  does  like,  it  is 
mystery.  Still  tiiey  kept  tiieir  eyes  on  die  Independents 
and  reports  were  made. 

"  And  what  did  tiiey  talk  about  last  night?"  inquired 
die  minister. 


224  THE   VANGUARD 

"  Oh,  it  was  just  a  yes  and  no  meeting  [a  debate] 
they  had." 

"  A  yes  and  no  meeting  again  ?  But  they  had  a  yes 
and  no  meeting  just  a  few  nights  ago,  and  when  will  they 
ever  get  done  with  this  yes  and  no  ?  Did  you  ever  hear 
of  anything  so  ridiculous  as  a  yes  and  no  meeting,  and 
the  ayes  appear  to  have  it !  Ha  !  ha !  "  roared  the  prime 
minister.  "  If  it  wasn't  for  that  rascal  Jay,  we'd  put  the 
whole  lot  of  them  into  jail,  and  then  they  might  see  what 
yes  and  no  would  do." 

But  this  idea  would  not  down,  on  the  other  hand  it 
spread  in  all  directions,  among  the  church  folk  principally, 
and  greatly  to  Willis'  fear  and  sorrow,  there  were  yes 
and  no  meetings  held  in  the  chapels.  The  government 
got  it  into  its  head  that  Christianity  had  to  do  with  po- 
litical upheavals — as  it  has,  true  enough,  but  not  just  in 
the  way  the  government  thought. 

Christians  came  from  long  distances  to  hear  the 
speeches  made  at  the  Tok-neep  Club.  There  was  an 
earnestness  and  fire  about  Jay  that  would  have  impressed 
a  less  simple-hearted  people.  His  speeches,  born  of  the 
Western  man's  thought,  and  spoken  in  the  Eastern  man's 
tongue,  were  most  telling.  He  wore  Western  clothes 
like  Willis,  had  a  mind  trained  to  the  New  World,  and 
spoke  Korean  as  no  foreigner  ever  could  do,  and  many 
honest  folk  from  the  distant  hill  lands  opened  their 
mouths  and  listened,  and  wondered. 

Chee  was  none  the  less  forceful,  but  he  was  less  a  for- 
eigner than  Jay.  His  mind,  however,  was  exceeding 
just  and  his  words  fair.  They  could  hear  him  say, 
"  Every  man  kicks  the  dog  that's  down.  Korea,  gentle- 
men, is  the  down-dog,  without  friends  and  without  any 
grounds  for  respect.  The  only  way  to  work  a  change  is 


THE  TOK-NEEPS  225 

for  each  man  to  be  honest,  and  to  strive  to  encourage 
honesty.  Do  right !  Not  only  does  the  Bible,  that  has 
overturned  the  world,  say  so.  but  the  Books  of  Confucius 
as  weft.  Do  what  is  right,  and  alksl^m  from  what  is 
•iiM^L.  and  gradually  dishonest  officialdom  will  disap- 
pear, and  the  larincss  and  rottenness,  and  good-for-noth- 
•"g"*"*  that  infects  the  country,  wOl  pass  away." 

This  seemed  sound  doctrine,  and  many  who  heard,  de- 
cided  to  combine  the  church  with  the  welfare  of  the  state. 
This  accounted  for  thg  ves  ?*y*  no  meetings  lyf"g  fc*M 
inthecbapek. 

Hong,  too,  talked  much.  He  had  not  been  abroad, 
and  lacked  the  balance  of  the  West,  but  he  was  red  hot 
in  bis  enthusiasm.  On  Sunday  afternoon  he  and  his  fel- 
low-believers used  to  pray,  and  then  go  round  smashing 
temple  images,  and  carrying  off  pictures.  They  would 
come  home  at  night  in  triumph,  with  roDs  of  temple 
goods,  some  worked  on  silk,  and  some  painted  on  paper. 
There  was  the  God  of  War,  the  Spirits  of  the  Hills, 
and  no  end  of  leering  faces  and  fierce  eyes.  Hong's 
children  poked  sticks  at  the  old  God  of  War,  while  the 
company  sang,  -  Onward,  Christian  Soldiers." 

The  town  folk  who  stffl  acknowledged  the  old  faith, 
were  astounded  No  such  practice  had  ever  come  about 

united,  smashing  the  sacred  gods.  The  fires  began  to 
burn  up  in  their  souls,  and  a  day  of  judgment  was  looked 
for. 

Such  a  state  of  affairs  in  the  capital,  tawd  McKech- 
ern's  powers.  «  Look  here  Hong,"  said  he,  "  we  say  to 
Caesar,  <  keep  your  hands  off  Christ,'  but  Christ  never 
teDs  us  to  go  at  Caesar  wf  hammer  and  tongs  in  any  such 
way  as  you." 


226  THE   VANGUARD 

"  Then  what  would  you  advise  ?  "  asked  Hong.  "  We 
must  clear  out  devil-worship  if  we  would  get  a  good  gov- 
ernment." 

"  But,"  said  McKechern,  "  ye  must  na  dae  evil  that 
guid  may  come.  The  God  o1  War,  whas  een  ye  poked  oot 
wi'  sticks,  was  na  your  God  o'  War.  This  is  not  the  great 
God's  way,  Hong.  The  Lord  does  na  want  ye  to  do  sae. 
I  advise  against  it.  Be  kind  and  Christlike  to  your  un- 
believing neighbors,  and  it  will  dae  mair  to  kill  the  auld 
God  o'  War  than  all  yer  preens  and  pokes." 

Hong  went  away  feeling  that  McKechern  was  an  old 
fool  and  would  never  reform  the  state  in  a  thousand 
years. 

Many  days  afterwards  when  Mrs.  Hong  was  a  widow, 
McKechern  gave  her  a  dollar  for  an  old  remnant  of  the 
God  of  war,  with  his  eyes  poked  out,  that  had  lain  and 
gathered  dust  in  a  closet. 

All  over  the  North  the  influence  had  permeated,  and 
Willis  and  Plum  had  a  greater  task  on  hand  than  had 
ever  fallen  to  them  before.  Just  what  were  their  argu- 
ments against  the  Tok-neeps  f 

"  Nothing  against  them,"  said  Willis,  "  independence 
is  right,  and  there  is  any  amount  of  room  for  political 
reform.  Jay  and  Chee  are  honest  men,  as  far  as  I  know, 
but  the  Church  of  Christ  is  not  a  political  organization 
and  must  not  be  ;  the  moment  it  becomes  so,  its  spiritual 
influence  is  gone."  Willis  saw  at  once  that  the  only  way  to 
meet  it,  was  by  a  deeper  spiritual  influence  among  the 
people,  and  his  efforts  were  directed  towards  training 
classes,  that  assembled  at  various  places  for  Bible  study 
and  prayer.  At  the  classes  no  politics  were  discussed. 

Meanwhile,  independence  in  the  capital  grew  to  such 
proportions,  that  the  poor  old  government  quaked  and 


THE  TOK-NEEPS  227 

feared.  How  to  get  the  man  Jay  out  of  the  way  was  the 
question.  They  could  not  arrest  and  kill  him  for  fear  of 
foreign  complications ;  they  hardly  saw  how  they  could 
>inate  him,  for  he  walked  out  with  guards,  and  the 


guards  knew  that  their  billet  would  end  if  their  master 
was  killed ;  so  the  government  was  in  fearfully  hot  water 
over  it,  for  the  Independents  were  holding  open  air 
meetings,  and  Yes  and  No  threatened  to  overwhelm  the 
country. 

The  prime  minister  and  council  talked  it  over,  and 
then  paid  a  call  on  Jay.  "  You  are  under  contract  for 
five  years,  are  you  not,  to  give  lectures  in  the  School  of 
General  Deportment  at  £3,000  a  year  ?  " 

"  Yes,"  said  Jay. 

"  Well,"  said  the  government,  "  we  have  a  proposal  to 
make.  It  is  evident  that  you  are  not  satisfied  with  polit- 
ical conditions  in  this  benighted  land,  and  the  precious 
country  to  which  you  have  attached  yourself  suits  you 
admirably.  Besides  you  have  drunk  much  foreign  water, 
and  it  is  not  good  for  the  health  here  after  you  have  done 
so.  We'll  pay  you  down  the  $15,000,  to  have  you  go 
away  in  peace.  We  would  not  think  of  doing  so  in  all 
cases,  but  His  Majesty  loves  you  very  dearly,  and  so  he 
desires  to  make  you  useful  and  happy." 

Jay  accepted  the  offer,  and  where  once  he  had  sailed 
away  under  hatches  for  his  life,  this  time,  he  sailed  away 
with  all  the  flags  flying  and  £15,000  in  his  pocket  as  a 
parting  salute. 

Thus  ends  the  pestilential  Tok-neep,  thought  the  gov- 
ernment, but  it  never  made  a  greater  mistake.  The 
meetings  went  on,  just  as  they  had  done  before,  only 
with  Chee  in  command.  More  people  than  ever  at- 
tended, and  congregated  in  white  masses  before  the  Great 


228  THE  VANGUARD 

Bell,  in  the  public  square  of  the  city.  Soldiers,  with  fixed 
bayonets,  circled,  wonder-eyed,  around  this  platform, 
where  men  talked  as  never  before. 

"  Human  beings  are  not  dead  dogs,"  said  Chee,  "  but  are 
born  with  souls  and  intellects.  We  are  not  made  to  lie, 
and  cheat,  and  deceive,  like  incarnate  devils,  but  to  act 
honestly,  each  offering  a  helping  hand  to  his  fellow. 
Only  as  he  does  this  is  he  a  man  and  not  a  beast. 
Thinking  men  constitute  the  State.  Let  us  call  on  offi- 
cials to  be  honest,  to  stop  '  squeeze,'  to  give  up  the  danc- 
ing girls  and  be  true  to  their  wives,  and  clean  out  all  the 
filth  that  has  gathered  for  these  ages.  Are  these  words 
not  true  ?  Which  of  you  soldiers  here  would  shoot  a 
man  for  words  like  these  ?  " 

"  No  one,"  said  a  sergeant  standing  by. 

"  Then,  men,  let's  make  this  Land  of  Morning  Calm  an 
honor  and  not  a  disgrace.  Let  every  one  lend  a  hand 
and  it  can  be  done."  With  like  appeals  he  stirred  up 
the  people.  Christians  and  non-Christians  were  banded 
together.  Night  after  night  the  canopy  poles  were 
raised  in  the  public  square  and  the  flags  flew.  Until  the 
bell  under  the  Kiosk  tolled  the  midnight  hour  there  was 
a  seething  conference  of  independence  seekers. 

The  government  had  had  enough  of  it,  .and  one  day, 
by  early  dawn,  there  was  a  placard  posted  on  the  stone 
arches  of  the  gates,  "  There  shall  be  no  meetings  in  the 
heaven  above  or  earth  beneath,  in  the  city  or  outside  of 
it,  and  no  public  haranguing.  By  order." 

The  night  following  Chee  and  his  more  faithful  friends 
again  met  in  the  public  square,  and  a  great  many  hot 
speeches  were  made.  White  silk  coats  rustled,  and  horse- 
hair hats  glistened  under  the  lights.  Police  came  about 
to  interfere,  but  they  were  asked  to  keep  quiet  for  a  little, 


THE  TOK-NEEPS  229 

and  then  Chee  would  accompany  them  to  the  station. 
They  too  grew  interested  in  what  Hong  and  others  had 
to  say,  and  when  all  was  over,  Chee  and  his  party,  num- 
bering some  fifty,  wended  their  way  to  the  prison.  The 
old  warden  was  in  bed  and  had  to  be  knocked  up. 

"  Who  are  you  and  what  do  you  want?"  asked  he. 

"They  are  Independents  to  be  locked  up  for  breaking 
His  Majesty's  command,"  answered  the  police. 

"  Independents !     How  many  have  you  arrested  ?  " 

"  We  didn't  arrest  any.  Fifty  and  more  have  come 
and  want  to  be  locked  up." 

The  old  warden  gave  a  sudden  start  "  Fifty  of  them 
come  to  be  arrested!  Whoever  heard  the  like?  Tell 
them  to  go  away." 

The  police  came  out  and  said, "  The  warden  says  '  go 
away.'" 

"  Oh,  but,"  says  Chee,  "  we  are  here  as  law-breakers, 
and  the  matter  must  be  settled." 

• « Go  away/  he  says." 

"No,"  says  Chee,  "we  can't  go  away,"  and  they 
marched  in,  fifty  of  them,  and  camped  in  the  quarters  of 
the  warden. 

The  warden  then  called  up  the  chief  of  police  by 
telephone. 

"These  miserable  Independents,"  said  the  chief. 
"  What  do  they  want  now?  " 

•  They  want  to  be  arrested." 

"  Want  to  be  arrested !     Tell  the  idiots  to  go  home." 

"But  die  warden  did,  and  they  refused,"  was  the 
answer. 

"Under  Heaven  and  among  men,"  said  the  chief, 
«  was  the  like  ever  seen  before?"  So  he  sent  a  tele- 
phone message  to  the  palace  and  roused  up  die  govern- 


230  THE   VANGUARD 

ment.  "  Fifty  Independents  have  come  and  want  to  be 
arrested." 

"  Want  what  ?  " 

"  Permission  to  be  arrested." 

His  Majesty's  government  collapsed.  Such  a  thing 
had  never  been  heard  of  since  the  days  of  Yo  and  Soon. 
To  give  oneself  up  to  arrest  was  too  deep  and  diabolical. 

"  Strenuously  refuse  to  arrest,"  came  back  the  answer, 
and  thus  the  matter  stood,  the  warden  driven  distracted  all 
night  long  by  the  presence  of  these  Independents. 

The  Christians  were  hilarious ;  this  was  another  victory 
for  the  club,  and  the  bright  day  was  soon  to  dawn,  when 
every  man  would  go  to  church,  read  his  Bible,  and  pay 
up  all  his  past  debts.  The  idols  had  been  broken,  the  gov- 
ernment had  been  driven  into  the  corner,  and  the  club 
had  grown  great  in  numbers.  Some  of  the  churchmen 
on  seeing  the  kind  of  people  who  were  now  flocking  in, 
drew  in  their  breath  in  alarm.  All  the  malcontents  of 
the  country  joined,  to  shout  and  fling  dust  into  the  air. 
Meetings  were  held  just  in  front  of  the  palace,  within  ear- 
shot of  His  Majesty,  and  the  frequent  clapping  of  hands 
and  cheers  that  accompanied  disturbed  his  imperial  slum- 
bers. 

One  day  as  Willis  drew  into  the  old  city  on  horse- 
back, there,  before  him,  was  a  vast  concourse  of  white- 
coated  people,  completely  filling  the  square  before  the 
Gate  of  Great  Peace.  He  listened.  One  young  man 
with  pale  face  and  furious  manner,  was  haranguing 
against  despotic  governments  and  authorities,  that  tried 
to  crush  out  yes  and  no  meetings  and  other  rights  in- 
herent in  a  people.  "  May  we  die,"  said  he,  "  rather  than 
give  up  the  fight." 

It  was  the  first  view  Willis  had  had  of  the  organization 


THE  TOK-NEEPS  231 

:•;•::.;  through  the  :^  North   ^i 
UwdL  such  2.  frantic  ungoverned 
;.:     :    :.-::.-•-    :.    :•=  :....-.  havr  :_-  ~-i:.  LI.  influ- 
Gbee  tiben  spoke  and  spoke  well     He  warned  the 
speeches  2nd  lawless   methods, 
ibir  advanced  civ- 
like  first  mark  of  dviTiTation  -sras  law 
r.    •*  Tlac  gtjwonnmaeirt  has  j*ielded  the  right  to 
hold  pdbfic  •^••••g^     Let's  hold  them  in  a  way  that  -will 


Jmsltherc  l^fflCfe  iiaet  McKechern.  «  Cr^wf  millcfcalthf" 
sad  tibc  Scott,  •  boat  yon  are  DO  up  in  the  classics,  Willis, 
thafs  Ac  Gaelic  liar  "  a  hundred  thousand  welcomes.  '  " 

And  is  this  the 


-  Aye,"  said  McKedaena,  -  and  tibe  daftest  collection 
o"  unspoosibile  bodfes  ye  ever  saw.  Mon,  but  it's  peeti- 
fidL  They  mean  wdQ,  most  of  them,  bat  the  wherewithal 

WiUBsaw  Cfcg^1  later  and  heard  his  .opinions.  Ghee  said 
Ac  ddb's  days  were  ended  and  that  there  was  no  longer 
aay  hnliBag  it  im  ihamd.  Chee  had  been  governor  of  the 
capital  amd  vas  a  ™ta.Ti  of  rank  and  influence. 

"  Why  don\  yon  and  a  few  of  your  social  equals,  form 
a  band  to  steadily  and  persistently  work  for  the  right,  as 


love  been  done,  but  it's  too  late 
e  awe  OBI  Ac  ewe  of  fierce  reaction," 
ss  ABB  a  mouth   Chee  had  to  %  for  his  life 
:'::   rr.iay  daj^   in  lie   hooBK  afa 


•  ^yf-arl  doco.  and  dinna  gae  lookin'  aboot 
JicKccibern's  advice  to 


232  THE  VANGUARD 

"  But,"  said  Chee,  "  I'd  rather  give  myself  up  and  let 
them  do  what  they  like." 

"  Whist,  mon,"  was  the  rejoinder. 

In  the  meantime  up  North  there  had  been  many  arrests 
and  some  of  Plum's  friends  were  in  jail,  the  very  ones  he 
had  warned  to  keep  out  of  the  Independence  Club. 

"  But  we  didn't  know  that  you  were  right  then  ;  how 
could  we  know  ?  Make  haste  and  get  us  out,  we  trust 
in  the  Lord  first,  and  you  second."  Plum  did  help,  and 
on  a  promise  being  given  that  they  would  engage  in  no 
more  demonstrations  against  the  government,  they  were 
set  free. 

Ko  had  been  convinced  from  the  first  that  it  was  not 
the  Independence  Club  Korea  needed,  but  just  the  plain 
gospel,  and  he  had  so  spoken  in  public,  and  this  had 
roused  the  hostility  of  some  of  his  fellow-workers,  less 
earnest  than  he.  Kang  said  that  Ko  would  never  do 
anything  in  the  world  with  his  ideas  to  just  pray,  pray, 
pray.  We  must  work  too.  Paul  worked. 

"  Yes,"  said  Ko,  "  at  tent  making.  That's  a  kind  of 
work  that  does  not  disturb  belief." 

"  But  don't  you  find  men  in  the  Bible  who  believed  and 
tried  to  reform  the  government  ?  " 

"  There  is  one  man  I  think  of,"  said  Ko.  "  It  was  Peter ; 
he  took  a  sword  to  reform  the  government  and  the  first 
thing  he  did  was  to  go  to  sleep.  It  will  put  you  to  sleep 
spiritually,  Kang,  I'm  afraid.  The  next  thing  he  did  was 
to  follow  '  afar  off,'  and  the  next  thing  he  did,  because  of 
that  sword,  was  to  swear  and  tell  lies.  I  don't  want  any- 
thing but  the  sword  of  the  spirit,  as  the  moksa  says, 
against  the  government.  I'm  afraid  I  might  go  to  sleep, 
and  fall  behind,  and  then  swear  and  tell  lies." 

This  made  Kang  and  others  of  them  furious.     They 


THE  TOK-NEEPS  233 

would  oust  Ko  from  his  place  in  the  mokstfs  affection, 
and  have  more  wakeful  influences  to  guide  the  church ; 
so  they  sat  down  and  wrote  Willis  a  letter.  They  stated 
that  they  were  men  of  the  dust,  and  by  no  means  free 
from  sin,  and  not  fit  to  cast  stones  at  even  a  dog,  but 
there  was  Ko,  a  very  good  man,  a  very  earnest  believer, 
a  very  good  Christian,  but  had  not  the  church  rules 
about  marriage,  and  could  he  be  a  helper  with  the  many 
complications  attending  him.  Willis  read  it  over  and  un- 
derstood at  once  the  motive  that  prompted  the  writing, 
but  he  could  not  ignore  it,  and  would  have  to  make 
additional  inquiry  over  what  he  had  already  made,  when 
Ko  was  taken  in. 

Ko  was  confronted  with  the  question  and  his  eyes  filled 
with  tears.  It  was  too  bad  a  story,  this  past  life  of  his, 
to  mention.  It  had  come  back  to  him  in  the  quiet  hours 
of  the  night,  and  he  had  wept  many  times  to  think  of  the 
wrongs  that  could  never  be  righted,  of  lives  ruined  by  his 
deeds.  "Whatsoever  a  man  soweth  that  shall  he  also 
reap,"  "  but  here  am  I  amid  comfort,  with  all  the  bitter 
atonement  heaped  upon  another,"  and  Ko's  heart  was 
melted  at  the  thought  of  it.  His  work  must  be  to  rescue,  to 
save,  to  help  just  such  ones  as  he  had  ruined, — no  time  for 
clubs  or  government  reform.  When  Willis  made  in- 
quiry, Ko  asked  to  have  leave  to  write  it  out  instead  of 
speaking  it,  as  he  did  not  like  the  sound  of  the  words, 
and  a  day  later  he  came  in  with  his  black  vertical 
characters  down  a  crumpled  page,  that  told  the  story 
of  his  so-called  married  life,  with  which  the  reader  is  al- 
ready acquainted. 


XXXI 
THE  DRAGON'S  PERPLEXITY  AND  WILLIS' 

STILL  the  world  was  bright.  Willis  lived  with  his 
companions,  not  in  the  city  any  longer,  but  out  on 
the  hills  where  he  had  built  a  house.  It  was  spa- 
cious and  wide,  and  the  Dragon  was  in  charge.  He 
kept  it  clean  and  the  knives  and  towels  and  spoons  were 
all  numbered  in  his  book.  Any  loss  of  these  called  forth 
a  reckoning,  not  with  the  master,  but  with  the  Dragon. 
The  gateman  and  the  under  boy,  who  did  chores  about 
the  kitchen,  had  to  answer  on  their  lives  and  the  missing 
articles  were  soon  forthcoming.  Yap  was  fat  and  round 
and  well,  wore  a  collar,  and  chased  Korean  dogs. 

But  the  Dragon  was  troubled  in  his  inner  soul,  and  the 
light  and  frivolity  of  boyhood  had  passed  from  him. 
McKechern's  words  had  haunted  him  for  many  a  day. 
He  was  respectful,  but  was  stern  and  fierce,  and  when  he 
stropped  the  long  knife  in  the  kitchen  he  would  mutter 
words  about  no  soft  gospel  suiting  a  land  like  this.  The 
Independence  movement  the  Dragon  believed  in.  He 
had  heard  Chee  and  Chee's  words  were  true,  and  his 
voice  was  the  one  needed  in  such  evil  days  as  these,  when 
men  not  fit  to  sit  with  Yap  were  ruling  the  land.  His 
master  saw  only  one  side  of  the  question,  and  forgot  the 
other ;  he  was  true  and  good,  yes,  too  good  for  Korea 
and  Koreans.  Give  him,  the  Dragon,  a  chance,  with  a 
short  handle  and  long  blade  and  he  would, — but  it  is 
better  not  to  think  just  what  the  Dragon  would  do. 
234 


DRAGON'S   PERPLEXITY     235 

One  evening,  at  the  close  of  the  class,  Ko  overheard  the 
Dragon  preaching  a  sermon  to  some  of  the  simpler  coun- 
trymen who  sat  and  listened  with  wonder.  "  Believe,"  said 
the  Dragon,  "  yes,  believe  well,  but  do  your  duty  too. 
No  land  can  be  let  go.  Men  are  born  '  free  and  equal ' 
[one  of  Jay's  sayings  he  had  caught],  and  are  each  re- 
sponsible. Imagine  a  governor  who  thinks  the  world  is 
flat,  and  keeps  no  end  of  sorcerers  and  dancing-girls. 
Would  George  Washington  put  up  with  that  ?  " 

"  Who  was  George  Washington  ?  "  asked  the  company. 

"  Don't  you  know  ?  "  asked  the  Dragon,  with  an  ex- 
pression of  scorn  in  his  voice.  "  Why,  the  man  who 
liberated  America.  He  was  a  believing  man  too,  and 
has  'the  Resurrection  and  the  Life'  written  over  his 
grave  where  thousands  of  people  go  to  see." 

The  learning  of  the  Dragon  awed  these  simple  farmers, 
and  had  its  influence.  "  There  is  that  dog  Yap,  he 
knows  more  than  our  prime  minister."  The  truth  of  it 
was  a  little  '  learning '  had  made  the  Dragon  mad. 

"  I  don't  like  the  taste  of  that  young  man's  words," 
said  Ko.  "  He  will  get  into  trouble  yet." 

Willis  loved  the  Dragon  and  knew  he  could  trust  him 
implicitly.  There  were  no  falsehoods  about  him,  he  was 
a  faithful  servant,  and  would  any  day  have  been  ready  to 
die  for  his  master,  and  yet  he  was  not  yet  baptized.  He 
had  come  up  for  examination,  but  there  was  a  flaw  in  the 
Dragon's  belief,  that  had  kept  him  afar  off,  though  not 
from  preaching  sermons.  A  cleaner,  neater  lad,  with 
hair  plaited  down  his  back,  was  not  to  be  seen  in  the 
Land  of  Morning  Calm. 

The  years  that  had  passed  over  Willis  had  told  on  him. 
Added  to  ordinary  burdens  was  the  nightmare  of  malaria, 
that  dogs  some  people's  steps  in  the  Far  East.  Quinine 


236  THE  VANGUARD 

would  check  it  for  a  little,  but  back  it  would  come,  and 
nothing  but  a  change  of  surroundings  could  shake  one 
free.  Ordered  by  the  physician,  he  decided  to  take  a 
sea  voyage  to  Japan,  and  have  Ko  and  the  Dragon  ac- 
company. The  breath  of  the  sea  would  reinvigorate, 
and  a  change  in  environment  would  be  restful.  So  he 
made  the  trip,  the  wonders  of  which  it  took  Ko  and  the 
Dragon  months  to  detail  to  their  friends. 

On  their  return  he  received  letters  from  home,  one  from 
Shoreland  who  said,  "  Within  a  year,  or  a  little  more,  we 
hope  to  make  a  journey  to  the  Far  East,  my  wife  and  I, 
and  of  course  we  shall  call  on  Korea,  but  more  anon." 

How  delighted  Willis  was,  for  nothing  would  give  him 
greater  pleasure  than  to  introduce  this  genial  business 
man  to  the  dusky  groups  that  gathered  round  him.  Truly 
enough  Shoreland's  heart  would  respond,  and  his  eye 
would  see.  Another  letter  that  touched  him  more  closely 
was  from  Kline's  father,  Mr.  Murray,  written  in  his  severe 
but  honest  hand,  asking  a  number  of  questions.  He  had 
no  faith  in  Orientals,  and  he  thought  history  would  bear 
him  out;  he  was  unable  to  consent  to  his  daughter's 
going  to  any  such  place ;  that  matter  was  settled,  but  he 
still  had  the  highest  regard  for  Willis,  his  devotion  and 
his  courage.  He  respected  a  man,  also,  who  was  willing 
to  give  up  any  treasure  for  what  he  believed  to  be  the 
will  of  God.  Would  Willis  answer  him  some  questions, 
for  his  own  heart  was  troubled  as  to  the  duties  of  a  Chris- 
tian. He  said  they  were  well  and  that  he  and  Eline  bore 
no  ill-will,  but  would  always  think  of  him  as  a  brave,  true- 
hearted  boy.  "  May  God  guide  and  bless  you  in  the 
great  work  to  which  you  seem  called." 

He  didn't  mention  in  his  letter  that  Eline  had  had  an 
offer  of  marriage,  exceedingly  good,  which  she  had 


DRAGON'S   PERPLEXITY     237 

tossed  aside  with  not  unmixed  grace.  She  had  loved 
one  man,  but  she  was  willing  to  give  up  even  him,  of 
course,  if  it  displeased  her  father.  To  love  some  one 
simply  because  he  was  near  home,  never!  Her  corre- 
spondence had  been  broken  off,  but  still  her  thoughts 
went  in  flight  over  the  wide  waste  of  waters,  somewhere 
away  off  to  other  worlds,  where  dwelt  the  one  who  used 
to  be  her  laddie,  tall  and  fair-haired.  This  trial  had  made 
her  cheek  pale,  and  had  put  an  earnestness  into  her  life 
that  she  had  not  known  before.  It  had  affected  likewise 
mysteriously,  the  beautiful  city  in  which  she  lived,  and 
had  changed  it  from  being  her  paradise,  to  a  piece  of 
fleeting  vanity.  What  availed  all  that  fashion  sought  for? 
She  would  help  the  needy  and  pass  it  by. 

In  Willis'  reply  there  was  no  breaking  down.  He  told 
clearly  where  he  thought  the  line  of  duty  and  privilege 
lay,  and  to  depart  from  it  was  to  yield  everything.  He 
gave  a  little  outline  of  the  work  and  of  how  God  had 
honored  it.  He  sent  his  greetings  to  Eline.  Did  she 
know  that  the  touches  of  her  fingers  on  the  keyboard 
years  ago,  were  still  ringing  in  his  ears,  and  that  fre- 
quently, off  among  the  hills,  he  could  hear  echoes  of 
Handel's  Largo,  that  seemed  to  him  eternal  notes  of 
praise. 

The  old  gentleman  was  touched  by  it,  but  would  not 
for  the  world  let  Eline  know,  so  he  took  his  top-hat  and 
gold-headed  cane  and  went  down  to  his  office. 

Eline  was  left  alone ;  she  was  no  longer  a  girl  but  a 
woman,  a  typical  American,  straight  and  beautiful,  with 
just  a  something  of  the  haughty  in  her  manner.  "  In- 
deed !  he  hadn't  loved  her  enough  to  give  up  that  precious 
calling  of  his  and  come  home." 

"  It  is  not  true,"  she  replied,  to  the  voice  of  the  tempter, 


238  THE   VANGUARD 

"  he  is  a  brave,  noble  man  and  has  made  God  first  in  his 
thoughts.  He  is  right,  and  I  love  him  more  than  ever." 
Her  fingers  passed  over  the  keys,  and  slowly  there  came 
forth  the  Largo,  till  her  own  heart  was  like  to  burst,  and 
she  hurried  away  to  her  room,  closed  the  door  and  wept 
tears,  that  in  olden  days  the  gods  would  have  bowed  their 
heads  to  look  upon. 

And  now  there  passed  through  the  church  secret  let- 
ters and  secret  messages.  On  no  account  was  Willis  or 
his  colaborers  to  know,  not  a  whisper.  The  time  had 
come  at  last  for  freedom,  but  the  moksa  would  see  things 
with  only  half  an  eye,  and  block  it,  no  one  must  tell. 
There  was  to  be  a  gathering  of  patriots  at  Fusan,  on  such 
a  date,  but  not  a  breath  of  it  to  the  moksa,  or  where  it 
would  reach  the  officials.  Money  was  needed,  all  who 
could  contribute  were  asked  to  do  so.  Many  hundreds 
of  dollars  were  gathered  from  Christians  and  others. 
Kang  was  an  agent  and  so  was  Saw  and  Han,  the  man  who 
had  opposed  Ko  and  Pang  and  joined  the  Independents. 
At  one  of  the  secret  meetings  Kang  read  a  letter  from 
Prince  Pak,  the  exile  in  Japan.  "  All  that  is  needed,"  said 
he,  "  are  a  few  of  the  trustworthy  Christians,  men  that  can 
be  depended  on,  and  the  way  is  clear.  Bring  what  funds 
you  have,  though  there  need  be  no  anxiety  about  money. 
Come  just  as  you  are  to  Fusan  on  such  a  date,  and  you 
will  be  provided  with  all  that  is  needed,  and  told  the  plan 
of  action." 

The  East  likes  mystery,  and  this  sort  of  whisper  pass- 
ing over  the  land  made  a  deep  impression.  To  not  a  few 
it  seemed  time  to  close  the  Bible  and  buckle  on  the  sword. 
Everywhere  the  Church  was  sounded,  but  almost  to  a 
man,  the  five  hundred  refused  to  lend  an  ear.  The  spirit 
of  God  was  not  in  it  to  them,  and  they  were  hands  off. 


DRAGON'S   PERPLEXITY     239 

"But,"  says  Kang,  "Prince  Pak  is  a  Christian,  and 
would  you  not  like  to  see  a  better  government  ?  Where 
can  the  wrong  be  in  combating  the  devil?"  Kang's  own 
conscience  smote  him  when  he  said,  "  Tell  not  the 
moksa"  The  one  who  had  brought  him  all  the  hope  he 
had,  who  had  been  his  angel  of  light,  was  pushed  out  of 
these  plans  of  his,  and  Kang  lived  to  repent  it  many  a 
bitter  day. 

The  missionaries  had  made  it  a  rule  not  to  interfere  in 
matters  that  pertained  to  the  government.  They  them- 
selves were  foreigners,  and  so  must  let  Korean  law  and 
justice,  such  as  they  were,  have  their  way.  The  Chris- 
tians were  not  Americans,  but  were  born  under  the  flag 
with  the  emblem  and  the  bars,  and  must  take  their  meas- 
ure of  injustice,  sometimes,  that  was  dealt  out  to  them. 
Were  they  arrested  purely  on  the  ground  that  they  were 
Christians,  the  case  was  otherwise,  and  would  have  to  be 
investigated  under  the  eye  of  a  Western  consul,  but  the 
rule  was,  not  meddle  in  politics  or  with  the  government. 

At  one  of  their  conferences  when  the  matter  had  come 
up  for  discussion,  and  had  been  settled  smoothly,  Plum 
arose.  "  Gentlemen,"  said  he,  "  it's  very  easy  to  decide  to 
let  some  one  else's  affair  go  as  it  pleases,  but  my  man's  in 
jail ;  what  am  I  going  to  do  about  it?  He's  been  with 
me  for  five  years,  and  I  want  him  for  twenty-five  more, 
and  now  he's  in  jail.  The  government  says  he  is  a  foreign 
sympathizer;  of  course  he  is,  he  sympathizes  with  me 
every  day  of  his  life,  and  I  say  he's  in  jail.  They  mean  to 
try  him  next  summer  some  day,  and  beat  him  between 
times,  and  sit  back  and  watch  me  and  say, '  The  soulless 
foreign  barbarian,  he'd  let  his  man  die  without  lifting  a 
finger  for  him.'  Friends,  I  want  you  to  know  it,"  and  he 
roared  at  the  top  of  his  voice,  «  my  man's  in  Jail.  Come 


240  THE   VANGUARD 

along  with  your  theories ;  I'm  willing  to  listen  to  them,  but 
one  thing  I  want  you  to  know  is,  that  my  man's  in  jail" 
The  tufts  stood  up  on  each  side  of  Plum's  bald  head,  and 
a  thousand  expressions  chased  themselves  over  his  coun- 
tenance, till  the  final  one  fixed  itself  hard,  and  said,  "  And 
I'll  get  him  out  or  I  go  to  jail  myself."  The  meeting 
cheered  and  applauded,  and  no  note  of  censure  was  passed 
on  Plum  for  that  last  expression  of  his. 

These  were  anxious  days,  and  Willis,  who  knew  that 
some  plot  was  brewing  underneath  the  surface,  could 
only  watch  and  pray.  When  he  saw  Kang  last,  his 
manner  was  changed,  so  was  Saw's,  and  others  who  used 
to  greet  him  with  shining  faces  now  dodged  round  the 
corner  or  slipped  away. 


XXXII 
WHERE  IS  THE  DRAGON? 

ONE  morning,  past  the  regular  breakfast  hour, 
there  was  no  familiar  sound  of  the  Dragon's  step 
in  Willis'  kitchen.  He  must  be  ill.  Willis 
would  see.  Then  the  gateman  came  in  and  the  chore 
boy  to  say  that  the  Dragon  was  missing.  He  was  not 
with  any  of  the  Christians.  They  had  looked  every- 
where and  no  one  knew.  But  he  would  come  back 
shortly,  and  so  they  waited.  The  day  passed  and  no 
Dragon,  two  days,  a  week,  a  month,  and  Yap  sat  with 
paws  crossed,  watery -eyed,  looking  out  into  vacancy.  A 
creepy  presentiment  crossed  Willis'  mind.  Something 
had  befallen  the  Dragon  somewhere  and  he  was  dead. 
Another  boy  was  installed  temporarily  in  the  kitchen, 
but  Willis  had  lost  more  than  he  ever  dreamed  of  in  this 
heady  lad  with  his  snap,  and  fire,  and  glossy  cue  down 
the  snow-white  jacket.  The  Dragon  had  been  his  way- 
ward faithful  housekeeper  during  these  years,  for  whom 
he  had  prayed,  and  whom  he  loved  with  all  his  heart. 

The  missing  lad  had  covered  his  escape  perfectly,  and 
was  on  board  a  steamer  ploughing  its  way  south  through 
the  Yellow  Sea.  He  sat  on  the  matting  in  the  steerage 
with  his  face  between  his  knees,  and  his  arms  clasped 
round  them.  His  errand  was  not  altogether  a  happy 
one,  for  he  had  not  told  his  master,  and  there  were  some 
doubts  in  his  mind  as  to  its  ultimate  success,  but  he  was 
in  it  now,  and  there  was  no  time  to  draw  back,  besides 
241 


242  THE   VANGUARD 

he  did  not  wish  to,  he  wanted  to  fight  and  ease  that  soul 
of  his. 

He  was  met  at  Fusan  by  a  tall  intelligent  looking 
Korean,  who  was  on  the  watch.  He  had  had  notifica- 
tion of  the  Dragon  beforehand.  "  A  stout,  strongly 
built  boy,  clean  and  neat,  and  brave  as  a  lion."  The  tall 
man  "  spotted "  him  at  once ;  and  so  this  was  the  lad 
highly  spoken  of,  who  had  been  in  the  service  of  the 
American.  "  Good,  come  along,"  and  he  led  the  way. 
They  passed  out  of  the  Japanese  town,  over  the  gnarled 
knuckled  hills  to  native  Fusan,  and  there,  in  a  large  room 
full  of  people,  the  Dragon  met  his  old  friends  Saw  and 
Kang.  There  were  others  too,  whom  he  had  seen  be- 
fore, all  on  the  same  errand,  but  they  were  under  military 
rule,  and  there  were  no  questions  to  be  asked,  or  expla- 
nations needed.  The  place  was  evidently  guarded  against 
hangers-on  and  eavesdroppers.  "  Take  some  sleep,"  said 
the  leader  to  the  men  gathered,  "  we  shall  have  night 
work  to  do,  and  you  must  rest  now,"  but  the  Dragon 
could  not  sleep.  This  was  a  fairy  tale  to  him,  and  his 
heart  leaped  at  the  thought  of  falling  in  like  soldiers  and 
marching  at  night,  ousting  the  old  government,  and  end- 
ing the  sorrows  of  ten  million  people.  The  leader  in- 
formed them  that  many  others  were  gathering,  so  that 
ultimately  there  would  be  several  thousands.  They  were 
the  advance  guard  and  had  some  duties  to  do  first.  They 
must  all  have  their  hair  cut  and  be  disguised  as  Japanese 
police. 

Over  their  heads  went  the  clippers,  deftly  handled  by 
some  one  who  had  learned  the  art  elsewhere,  over  the 
Dragon's  too,  till  the  long  glossy  tail  that  used  fairly  to 
snap  in  the  wake  of  its  owner's  footsteps,  dropped  and 
was  cast  aside  like  a  part  of  past  life,  ended  and  gone.  He 


WHERE  IS  THE  DRAGON*  243 

was  then  rigged  out  in  tight  pantaloons  and  leather  boots, 
hard  to  march  in,  but  he  was  a  soldier  now  and  had  put 
his  hand  to  a  great  aflair,  and  little  things  must  not  trouble. 
He  had  a  cap  fitted  to  his  head,  a  jacket,  a  bete  and  a 
short  sword.  A  glittering  new  revolver,  too,  was  buckled 
on,  and  a  case  full  of  cartridges.  Rang  and  Saw  and  die 
rest  were  likewise  armed  and  accoutred,  and  when  night 
had  fallen  the  order  was  given  to  march. 

There  were  about  fifty  in  the  company,  seen  of  course, 
by  late  passers  in  the  street  and  reported.  What  the 
East  does  in  secret,  all  men  know.  What  it  does  in  pub- 
lic a  few  passers  are  aware  of.  Their  plotting  was  known 
and  the  government  was  on  the  track,  but  there  was  no 
evidence  of  it  yet.  They  marched  on  and  on  with  many 
twists  of  ankles  and  stubbings  of  toes,  for  no  lights  were 
allowed.  Towards  midnight  they  pulled  up  before  a  large 
private  gateway  and  rapped  up  the  porter.  It  was  not  an 
official  Yamen,  but  the  house  of  one  of  the  rich  men  of 
the  South.  After  a  question  or  two,  one  gate  was  opened, 
and  they  marched  in.  The  leader  roused  up  the  owner, 
who  looked  out  in  a  drowsy  bewildered  way,  and,  by  the 
aid  of  a  light,  saw  the  yard  full  of  police.  He  was  round 
faced  and  ponderous,  and  had  a  fat  man's  voice.  "  What 
do  you  want,"  asked  he,  collecting  his  wits  about  him, 
"  coming  in  in  this  way  at  midnight?" 

The  leader  explained  in  a  quiet  firm  voice  that  they 
were  OB  a  crusade  *£?****  the  government,  that  plans 
were  perfected  for  its  overthrow.  In  the  meantime  they 
needed  money,  and  he  was  asked  to  loan  them  five  thou- 
sand' dollars.  It  would  be  paid  back  with  interest  when 
they  came  into  power,  and  that  the  fewer  words  they 
spoke  about  it  now  die  better. 

In  a  high  excited  key  die  fat  man  began  his  reply.   He 


244  THE  VANGUARD 

would  do  nothing  of  the  kind,  the  government  might  re- 
main as  it  was.  Pay  them  five  thousand  dollars  ?  Never. 

"  What  is  this  ?  "  asked  the  Dragon  of  Kang.  «  Are 
we  out  as  highway  robbers  ?  What  does  this  mean  ?  I 
thought  it  was  the  government  we  were  after." 

"I  don't  like  it  either,"  said  Kang  ;  "  but  we'll  see." 

"  If  you  don't  write  out  your  note  at  once,"  said  the 
leader  drawing  his  revolver,  and  pointing  it  at  the  fat 
man's  head,  "  I'll  put  this  shot  through  you  and  your  son 
will  write  it  out  instead." 

The  Dragon  was  horrified.  This  was  robbery  and 
murder.  "  I'll  have  nothing  to  do  with  it,"  said  he,  and 
with  a  dash  for  life  he  was  out  of  the  gate  and  gone.  He 
flung  the  revolver  as  far  as  he  could  throw  it,  rid  himself 
of  hat,  boots,  and  sword,  and  with  his  thin  socks  and  bare- 
head  away  he  scud  into  the  night,  scratched,  and  cut, 
and  bruised  by  the  stones,  and  speared  by  the  snags  that 
the  woodman  had  left.  He  had  heard  no  shot  fired,  but 
that  leader  was  a  murderer  just  the  same.  How  thankful 
he  was  to  escape ;  he  had  been  on  the  brink  of  hell.  How 
about  Kang  and  Saw  ?  They  would  never  agree  to  that. 
Had  they  only  known  before  starting  they  would  not  have 
gone,  but  it  was  military  discipline  and  they  could  not  in- 
quire. 

The  fat  man  seeing  a  glittering  weapon  at  his  head 
gave  his  note  on  a  firm  in  Fusan,  as  the  leader  demanded, 
and  they  marched  out  of  the  gate  to  try  elsewhere. 
"  Where  is  the  young  man  called  the  Dragon  ?  "  asked 
the  leader. 

"  He  has  run  off,"  says  Kang  ;  "  will  have  nothing  to 
do  with  this  kind  of  thing,  nor  will  I  either." 

"  What  do  you  mean  ?  "  says  the  leader.  "  It  will  all 
be  paid  back  with  interest." 


WHERE  IS  THE  DRAGON*  245 

It  was  all  paid  back,  true  enough,  in  their  own  coin 
before  the  day  was  over.  Towards  dawn,  while  trying  to 
find  the  Dragon,  they  were  ambushed  by  the  Japanese 
soldiers,  and  bullets  were  going  whiz,  spat,  round  them 
before  they  knew  it  One,  ended  the  leader's  plans 
with  regard  to  the  five  thousand  dollar  note,  and  all  other 
things.  Saw  was  wounded  but  not  killed.  He  was  among 
those  captured,  thirteen  of  them,  who  were  caught  when 
trying  to  grit  away  in  a  junk.  Twenty  men  were  killed. 
Rang  and  others  made  their  escape. 

But  how  about  the  Dragon  ?  Through  the  long  night 
he  had  trudged  on  and  on,  not  knowing  what  had  hap- 
pened, or  where  he  was  going,  save  that  there  was  a  kind 
of  pathway,  and  yonder  was  the  North  Star  ahead  of 
him.  He  was  five  hundred  miles  from  home,  where  Yap 
lived  and  the  master.  Like  a  fool  he  had  tried  to  save 
his  country  and  had  lost  himself.  Most  Koreans  are 
afraid  at  night,  but  not  the  Dragon ;  he  was  not  afraid  of 
anything  except  to  steal,  and  murder,  and  such  like,  for 
on  these  rested  the  judgment  of  God. 

He  must  put  his  pride  in  his  pocket  now,  and  beg  like 
a  Buddhist.  How  he  used  to  despise  the  shiny  shaven 
heads  of  these  craven  priests.  The  clothes  he  wore  too 
would  mark  him  where  he  went. 

He  was  stout  of  back,  was  the  Dragon,  and  kept  up  his 
pace  without  slackening  till  towards  daybreak,  when  he 
met  a  good-natured  country  lad,  with  a  padded  coat  and 
trousers,  on  his  way  for  wood.  They  were  grimy  and 
patched,  and  had  gray  cotton  tufts  sticking  out  of  the 
holes,  but  the  Dragon  thought  he  had  never  seen  so  com- 
fortable a  suit  before. 

-  I  say,"  said  he, «  how  far  is  it  to  the  capital  ?  " 

"The  capital!    Are  you  going  that  way?     It's   a 


246  THE   VANGUARD 

thousand  lee,  I  guess.  Why  don't  you  go  by  boat  ? 
Are  you  a  Japanese  ?  "  inquired  the  woodman. 

"  No,"  said  the  Dragon. 

"  Them's  nice  buttons  on  your  coat,"  continued  the 
woodman ;  "  what  are  they  made  of  ?  and  that  belt  too, 
that's  fine." 

The  Dragon  was  pretty  well  fagged  out,  and  did  not 
look  at  all  imposing.  "  I  tell  you,"  said  he,  "  I'll  give 
you  this  suit,  belt  and  buttons,  for  your  old  clothes  if 
you'll  give  me  a  little  breakfast  as  well." 

"  Do  you  mean  it  ?  "  asked  the  woodman  opening  his 
eyes.  "  I've  got  some  right  here,  you  may  have  this. 
Trade  clothes,  do  you  mean  ?  " 

"  Yes,  these  are  cold,"  said  the  Dragon. 

"  All  right,  I'll  trade,"  and  there,  in  the  shadow  of  the 
willows  the  exchange  was  made,  the  Dragon  looking  for 
all  the  world  like  a  low  cast  Buddhist  priest.  The  wood- 
man, a  squat,  good-natured  fellow,  laughed  to  think  of 
himself.  He  buttoned  up  his  coat,  fastened  the  belt,  got 
the  trousers  adjusted,  felt  himself  all  round,  and  then 
sang  out,  "  Im-i-ta-ti-on  Foreign-Devil !  " 

But  it  was  no  joke,  and  no  time  for  talk,  and  the 
Dragon  took  thankfully  his  chunk  of  rice  bread  and 
moved  on.  •  For  five  hundred  miles  the  whole  nation 
seemed  bent  on  tormenting  him.  There  was  insult  of- 
fered at  every  corner,  and  for  no  other  reason  than  the 
pure  love  of  giving  it.  He  had  tried  to  save  his  fellow- 
countrymen,  and  lo,  he  was  being  now  kicked,  and  cuffed, 
and  insulted,  by  these  same  ten  millions  of  people,  who 
were  not  worth  the  saving. 

"  A  little  rice,  please,"  humbly  asked  he  at  the  door  of 
a  guest  room. 

"  Umph  !     A  choong  [Buddhist  priest]  eh  ?    Say  your 


WHERE  IS   THE  DRAGON*  247 

prayers  fast,"  said  a  red-faced  man,  looking  out  coughing 
and  spitting,  "  and  then  we'll  see  about  rice." 

"  But  I'm  not  a  Buddhist,"  said  the  Dragon. 

"  Not  a  Buddhist,  man,  you  can  see  your  head  shining 
a  mile  off.  Say  your  prayers  now,  Nam-mu-anue-ta- 


"  Some  rice,  please,"  was  the  only  response. 

"  Rice  ?  Is  that  the  way  you  answer  me  ?  Take  that," 
and  the  red-faced  man  gave  him  a  fearful  kick,  not  a  toe- 
kick,  but  an  Oriental's  horizontal  gun-kick,  with  the  flat 
of  the  foot 

The  Dragon  was  all  played  out  in  spirit,  and  the  blow 
sent  him  reeling. 

"  If  you  are  not  a  Buddhist,  then  you  are  up  to  the 
Wickedness  of  God  ;  get  out  of  this." 

If  the  Dragon  was  anything  he  was  by  nature  a  fighter. 
Men  and  boys  all  knew  that  in  his  own  town  ;  lithe  as  a 
tiger,  and  with  muscle  to  match  the  mind  that  was  in 
him,  he  was  more  than  the  equal  of  two  ordinary  Koreans, 
but  to-day  there  was  no  heart  left  to  fight  "  Fool  that 
I  am,"  said  he,  "  I  desire  to  die  ;  "  so  he  picked  himself  up 
and  trudged  famishing  along  his  way. 

With  all  his  strength  and  mind  in  it,  he  was  knocking 
off  one  hundred  and  fifty  lee  or  fifty  miles  a  day,  which 
was  a  terrible  tax  on  one  not  accustomed  to  regular 
walking.  The  fragments  of  food  were  so  few  and  far  be- 
tween, that,  little  by  little,  his  strength  was  failing  him. 
One  day  after  a  long  hard  pull,  with  nothing  in  the  way 
of  food  for  twelve  hours,  and  very  little  before  that  time, 
he  made  application  at  a  guest  room. 

"  A  little  rice,  please  !  " 

"  Hollo  !  "  said  a  voice  in  reply,  "  what  monastery  are 
you  from,  and  what  is  your  priest  name  ?  " 


24B  THE  VANGUARD 

"  I'm  not  a  priest,"  said  the  Dragon. 

"  You  lie,  all  Buddhists  lie,  greatest  liars  in  the  world. 
Let  me  hear  you  pray." 

"  Have  mercy,"  said  the  Dragon.   "  I  can't  pray." 

"  Then  if  you  are  not  a  priest  you  are  a  man  of  the 
world,  and  will  know  how  to  sing  and  dance.  Let's  hear 
you  sing,  and  dance  me  a  bit.  If  you  dance  well  I'll  give 
you  a  dinner." 

Poor  Dragon,  thin  and  wasted,  with  his  unsightly 
clothes,  his  cropped  priest  head,  and  his  face  tanned 
black  from  exposure,  had  to  dance  and  sing  before  the 
eyes  of  the  public,  and  so  earn  a  dinner  or  be  kicked  and 
sent  off  starving.  Some  old  silly  song  that  he  hadn't 
thought  of  for  years  came  to  his  rescue.  Before  the 
town,  yes  one  of  the  towns  he  wanted  to  save,  that 
now  laughed  and  jeered  at  him,  he  sang  and  went  round 
and  round  in  a  circle,  dancing,  while  his  old  padded  pan- 
taloons kept  time,  fluff,  fluff,  fluff,  fluff. 

True  to  his  word  the  master  gave  him  a  dinner,  treated 
him  kindly  and  let  him  sleep,  but  it  was  many  a  day  still 
that  he  continued  to  attract  attention  along  the  road. 
Passers  turned  their  heads  to  look  at  him,  and  made  re- 
marks about  his  clothes ;  the  girls  tittered  and  the  little 
boys  shouted  as  he  went  by.  It  was,  indeed,  the  Dragon's 
passage  through  the  valley  of  humiliation. 

In  the  second  month,  when  hope  was  given  up,  there 
came  creeping  at  nightfall  into  the  outer  room  of  Willis' 
compound,  all  that  was  left  of  the  once  proud  Dragon. 
He  lay  down  on  the  heated  floor  so  grateful  and  comfort- 
ing, and  wanted  to  sleep  on  forever.  But  scarcely  had 
his  head  touched  the  wooden  pillow  when  there  was  a 
frantic  scratch  at  the  door,  without  any  regard  for  the 
paper.  In  bounced  Yap,  wild  with  joy.  He  fairly 


WHERE   IS  THE  DRAGON?  249 

screamed  and  tried  to  run  round  in  circles,  but  when 
space  would  not  permit  it  he  stopped  to  sniff,  and  he  sniffed, 
and  sniffed,  as  much  as  to  say,  "  Well,  I  declare,  Dragon, 
how  did  you  get  such  pantaloons,  and  where  have  you 
been  ?  " 

Yap  was  a  fool  and  did  not  know,  but  would  the 
master  forgive  him,  and  what  would  Ko  and  Pang 
say? 

A  moment  later  Kim  looked  in  at  the  door.  "  Who 
is  this?"  asked  he.  It  was  dark,  and  there  was  no 
reply  for  a  moment.  He  saw  some  one.  "Who  is 
it?  You  must  get  permission  to  sleep  here,  you 
know." 

"  It  is  I,"  said  the  voice  of  the  Dragon. 

Kim  leaped  in  and  took  him  by  the  hand.  "  You've 
come  back,  thank  the  Lord !  are  you  well  ?  "  Kim  struck 
a  light,  and  the  amazed  look  on  his  face  told  what 
he  thought.  "  Are  you  really  the  Dragon  ?  Who  are 
you  ?  "  But  it  was  the  old  voice  that  replied,  though  a 
little  thin.  "  It's  what  used  to  be,"  was  the  answer.  "  Is 
the  moksa  well  ?  " 

"  Yes ;  and  he's  waited  and  waited  for  you.  He  has 
just  now  come  in,  go  and  see  him." 

There  was  no  more  pride  left  to  deter  his  steps ;  away 
went  the  Dragon  just  as  he  was,  and  a  moment  later  he 
stood  before  Willis.  His  voice  choked  so  he  could  not 
speak,  and  the  tears  rolled  down  his  cheeks.  "  Forgive 
me !  "  he  tried  to  say. 

Willis  saw  at  once  that  this  tough,  hardy  boy  of  his 
was  nearly  dead,  and  the  wan,  wasted  look  of  him  was 
more  than  he  could  endure.  "Go  and  rest  to-night, 
Dragon,  and  tell  me  to-morrow." 

Ko  came  in  later  and  heard  the  story.     His  heart  was 


250  THE   VANGUARD 

glad,  oh  so  glad.  Doubtless  it  was  God  calling  the  way- 
ward boy  and  all  would  be  well.  Through  the  night, 
while  the  moon  hung  high  over  the  valley  and  the  way- 
farer slept  unconscious,  Ko,  with  sputtering  taper  and  a 
Chinese  Bible  before  him,  read  and  prayed. 

Next  morning,  in  clean  suit  of  clothes,  but  hollow- 
cheeked  still,  and  so  black  and  with  muddy  eye,  the 
Dragon  called  on  his  master  and  told  the  whole  story. 
He  had  thought  to  join  the  army  of  Prince  Pak  and 
march  against  the  capital.  It  was  a  wild,  foolish  plan, 
concerning  which  he  had  asked  no  advice,  and  about 
which  he  might  yet  have  to  answer  with  his  head. 
Would  the  master  forgive,  and  let  him  go  back  to  his 
housekeeping  ? 

There  was  no  question  of  Willis'  forgiveness.  He  had 
nothing  to  forgive,  but  did  the  Dragon  see  what  this  ex- 
perience meant  ?  Did  he  not  hear  a  voice  calling  him  ? 
This  was  God's  sermon,  surely  he  must  hear.  "  I  cannot 
fight  your  battles,  Dragon,"  said  Willis.  "  I  can't  even 
make  you  believe  or  control  your  thoughts.  In  one  sense 
we  may  help  each  other,  but  in  another  sense  we  each 
walk  by  himself.  The  great  settlement  comes  when  the 
heart  is  alone  with  God.  It  often  costs  much  to  bring 
this  meeting  about.  You  know  He  sent  Peter  many  tears 
of  bitterness,  and  there  was  no  more  pride  or  sword  to 
trust  to  before  they  had  their  final  meeting ;  and  Paul  He 
blinded  till  his  outside  eyes  could  not  see,  and  then  they 
met ;  and  the  Prodigal  He  left  in  rags  and  want,  so  that  at 
last  his  heart  came  to  him,  and  he  said,  '  I'm  going 
home ' ;  and  the  sheep  was  lost  in  the  mountains,  till  it 
most  died  of  fear,  but  after  its  lesson  had  been  learned, 
He  Himself  came  and  took  it  in  His  arms  and  they  went 
home  together.  He  restored  the  Prodigal,  and  He 


WHERE   IS   THE  DRAGON*  251 

cured  Paul's  blinded  eyes,  and  He  forgave  Peter,  and  so 
in  the  same  way  He  leads  the  Dragon,  over  the  length 
of  the  land  in  rags  and  want  and  suffering,  saying,  '  Come 
to  Me,  give  Me  thy  heart,  oh  Dragon ! ' " 


XXXIII 
UNDER  THE  KNIFE 

THE  newspapers  that  arrived  from  Seoul  gave  an 
account  of  the  fight  at  Fusan,  the  number  killed, 
those  captured,  thirteen  of  them,  among  whom 
was  Saw,  also  a  list  of  those  who  had  escaped,  and  whom 
the  soldiers  were  after.  In  this  list  was  Kang's  name. 
The  thirteen  had  been  brought  to  the  capital  and  were 
lodged  in  the  Kamok  prison,  where  Kwun  had  been 
hanged.  No  mention  was  made  of  the  Dragon,  but  that 
was  no  relief.  To  die  honorably  for  his  country  meant 
no  disgrace,  but  since  he  had  seen  that  revolver  pointed 
at  the  fat  man's  head,  the  whole  undertaking  had  been 
branded  with  the  mark  of  crime.  He  read  through 
the  story  of  how  they  had  been  captured,  of  the 
leader's  death,  and  other  sickening  details.  What  a 
fool  he  was  to  think  that  he  had  any  right  to  the 
sword,  and  there  was  poor  Saw  now,  awaiting  death 
doubtless ;  the  Dragon  would  pray  for  Saw. 

One  account  mentioned  that  a  red-covered  New  Testa- 
ment had  been  found  on  the  spot  after  the  fight,  and  that 
the  name  in  it  was  Kang  Kyung-jo.  It  had  been  thrown 
away  in  his  haste  to  escape,  and  it  proved  clearly  that  the 
Christians  were  the  enemies  of  the  state. 

At  about  this  time  a  soiled  note  came,  late  at  night,  by 

an  unknown  messenger  to  Ko.     He  read  it  and  it  said, 

"  Follow  this  man ;  some  one  in  great  distress  wants  to 

see  you."     There  was  no  name  signed  and  no  familiar 

252 


UNDER  THE  KNIFE  253 

character  to  the  writing,  but  Ko  at  once  put  on  his  hat 
and  followed.  "  Who  sent  this  note?"  inquired  Ko. 

"  I  don't  know,"  said  the  man ;  "  he  is  a  stranger,  and 
has  come  a  long  way.  I  think  he  has  sickness  inside  of 
him." 

They  reached  a  hut  in  a  lonely  place  outside  of  the 
city,  and  the  man  pointed.  Ko  opened  the  door  and  there 
was  Kang,  dressed  in  old  clothes,  and  looking  fearfully 
hard  up.  "  Many,  many  thanks,"  said  he.  "  You  are  one 
I  can  trust.  I've  worked  against  you,  Ko ;  but  my  con- 
science said  I  was  wrong.  This  government  business  has 
been  wrong,  too,  and  has  wrought  my  ruin.  If  I  had 
heeded  the  moksa  or  you,  .  .  .  but  it's  too  late  now. 
Can  you  let  me  have  a  little  money  ?  I  must  be  off,  as 
soldiers  are  after  me." 

Ko  hurried  back,  said  nothing  to  any  one,  but  gathered 
all  the  savings  he  had  in  the  world  and  brought  them  to 
Kang,  and  the  latter  disappeared  from  view.  Ko  said 
nothing  of  this  meeting  for  many  a  day ;  and  the  last 
word  of  Kang  was  that  he  was  far  north  and  across  the 
border  into  Siberia. 

The  trial  came  off  and  the  thirteen  were  sentenced  to  be 
strangled,  date  uncertain.  Day  after  day  they  remained 
in  suspense.  Ko  got  a  note  through,  and  received  an 
answer  from  Saw.  He  would  die,  he  said,  trusting  in  un- 
limited forgiveness.  He  had  made  a  failure  of  life  through 
lack  of  earnest  consecration.  "  May  the  church  give  up  all 
government  aspirations  and  move  on  to  victory."  Would 
he  tell  Fireblower  that  one  prisoner,  not  for  the  gospel's 
sake,  but  for  his  ^own  sins,  was,  nevertheless,  trust- 
ing. 

Some  nights  later,  a  courtier  of  the  King,  shining  in 
beads  and  scarlet,  and  with  long  retinue, -swept  into  the 


254  THE  VANGUARD 

prison,  In  the  open  square  he  read  a  proclamation  that 
the  prisoners  could  hear  through  the  bars.  "  By  the  in- 
finite grace  of  His  Majesty,  you,  red-handed  sinners,  have 
had  your  sentence  commuted  one  degree,  and  so,  in  place 
of  being  strangled  like  dogs,  you  will  be  beheaded  like 
gentlemen.  Get  ready  this  night."  There  is  no  block 
used  in  Korea.  Out  on  the  bare  ground  each  one  was 
stretched  to  receive  the  repeated  blows  of  the  sabre. 
Thus  disappears  the  man  Saw.  Many,  including  the 
Dragon,  wept  over  his  fate. 

It  was  a  great  shock  to  the  Christians,  and  it  settled  for 
the  time  being,  at  least,  the  doctrine  of  the  sword. 

But  that  red  book  had  been  found  on  the  battle-field, 
and  was  not  settled  for  yet,  and  over  and  across  the  sea 
the  Boxer  was  demonstrating  the  superiority  of  the  East 
with  wild  eye  and  triumph-yell.  Here  in  Korea  why  not 
take  a  hand  ?  An  order  was  issued ;  by  whom,  no  one 
knows ;  but  bearing  the  stamp  of  authority,  and  was  re- 
ceived by  all  the  governors  and  magistrates.  It  read, 
"  On  such  and  such  a  date,  you  are  to  wipe  out  Christianity 
from  your  district,  and  to  do  away  with  all  Europeans  and 
Americans" 

Gilbert  was  the  first  to  get  hold  of  it,  and  he  at  once 
sent  word  to  Willis,  knowing  what  a  multitude  was  under 
his  hand ;  also,  along  the  wires,  there  flashed  warning  of  it 
to  the  American  minister.  It  is  the  manner  of  some 
ministers,  to  sit  still  and  pooh,  pooh;  other  ministers 
know  the  Far  East  and  something  of  the  inner  side  of  the 
Oriental's  soul.  This  minister  did,  and  straightway  he 
went  to  headquarters. 

"  Here  is  an  order  you  have  sent,  that  I  have  some- 
thing to  say  about." 

"  What  order  ?  "  inquired  the  East. 


UNDER   THE   KNIFE  255 

"  This  with  the  red  seal,"  said  the  minister.  «  It  is 
your  seal,  therefore  your  order." 

They  read  it.  "  Destroy  Christians  and  kill  all  foreign- 
ers." "  Zounds  !  "  said  they.  "  This  would  be  awful,  it 
would  mean  murder.  It  is  our  seal  but  not  our  order." 

"  That  matters  not,"  said  the  minister,  "  the  order  has 
gone  out  with  your  seal ;  as  to  who  did  it  we  can  deal 
with  that  later ;  now  it  will  be  read  as  your  Majesty's  com- 
mand, I  ask  that  messages  be  sent  immediately  to  every 
governor  and  magistrate  countermanding  it." 

41  But  we  never  sent  it,"  said  the  East  "  How  can  we 
countermand  what  we  never  did,  and  in  any  case  no  one 
would  think  of  obeying  it ;  it  would  mean  the  loss  of 
human  life." 

"  Then,"  said  the  minister,  "  I  shall  have  gunboats  here 
inside  of  so  many  hours  and  they  will  see  to  counter- 
manding it." 

"  Oh,  why  do  you  speak  with  such  a  voice,  and  think 
with  such  thoughts  ?  " 

"  Never  mind  about  the  voice  or  the  thoughts,"  said 
the  minister.  "  Will  you  see  to  this  or  shall  I  ?  " 

"  Oh,  we'll  see  to  it." 

"  Then  it  must  be  done  to-night,  and  I  want  copies  of 
the  telegrams  and  receipts." 

"  But  this  is  not  ceremony,"  said  the  Far  East ;  "  this 
way  of  dealing  will  lead  to  strained  relations,  and  inter- 
fere with  our  intercourse  together." 

"  To-night,  please,  telegrams  and  receipts,"  said  the 
minister,  "  or  I  cable  for  men-of-war.  May  your  Majesty 
repose  in  peace." 

This  little  plot  was  nipped  in  the  bud  that  night,  by  the 
quick  and  keen  insight  of  one  man,  part  of  whose  office 
it  was  to  be  on  hand  at  just  such  an  hour  as  this.  The 


256  THE   VANGUARD 

church  was  saved  from  its  Boxer  movement,  without 
fully  knowing  how  it  came  about,  except  that  some- 
how the  western  Kongsa  (minister)  had  been  used  to  step 
in  and  save  them. 


XXXIV 

INGATHERING 

THE  church  was  guarded  from  dangers  temporal 
and  spiritual,  the  list  of  its  members  was  running 
up  far  into  the  thousands.     Earnest  and  thankful 
hearts  were  given  them  and   their  influence  was  telling. 
There  were  to  be  seventy-five  baptized  in  Ping-yang  on 
this  day  and  communion  celebrated. 

Each  worshipper  on  entering  pulled  off  his  shoes  and 
placed  them  on  a  shelf  by  the  door,  and  then  finding  an 
open  space  loosened  out  his  skirts  and  sat  down  cross- 
legged.  The  building  was  crowded,  and  in  the  wing  of 
the  L  sat  the  women.  The  day  was  lovely,  and  the 
mountains  in  the  distance  slept  in  the  sunshine.  There 
was  quiet  and  peace  and  many  heads  were  bowed  in 
prayer. 

For  the  first  hymn  they  sang  a  version  of  Old  Hun- 
dred, McKechern's  translation.  There  was  an  opening 
prayer  that  God  would  be  present  and  grant  His  bless- 
ing. The  Scripture  was  read,  and  following  it  the  list  of 
those  to  be  baptized,  the  applicants  sitting  in  a  row, 
the  men  on  one  side  and  the  women  on  the  other. 
Among  them  were  Kim,  the  shoemaker;  Cheung,  the 
governor's  secretary ;  Pok,  the  bookbinder ;  Moo,  the 
matmaker ;  Wang,  the  farmer  and  others,  and  of  the  women, 
Treasure's  mother,  Jewel's  grandmother,  Yong-namee's 
sister,  etc. 


258  THE   VANGUARD 

Willis  asked  them  if  they  were  willing  here,  before 
those  assembled,  to  be  baptized,  and  so  definitely  stand 
apart  as  Christians,  in  a  world  that  really  in  heart  had  no 
love  for  Christ  or  His  people.  Would  they,  day  by  day, 
read  His  word  and  have  communion  with  Him,  would 
they  tell  the  good  news  everywhere,  and  to  all  their 
friends,  would  they  turn  away  from  customs  dishonoring 
to  God  and  man,  and  endeavor  to  live  humble,  beautiful, 
earnest,  consistent  lives  ?  They  bowed  their  heads  and 
said,  "  Yea,  we  so  desire." 

There  was  another  prayer  in  which  those  to  be  bap- 
tized were  commended  to  God.  Would  He  not  take 
them,  sanctify  them,  use  them,  and  lift  them  up  out  of 
the  sin  smitten  earth  into  His  glorious  presence. 

There  was  one  bowed  head  that  Willis  could  not  look 
at  without  a  lump  in  his  throat.  It  was  the  Dragon's, 
and  Willis'  voice  trembled  when  later  on  he  said, "  Dragon, 
Child  of  the  Covenant,  I  baptize  thee  in  the  name  of  the 
Father,  and  of  the  Son,  and  of  the  Holy  Ghost. 
Amen." 

After  some  moments  of  silence,  Willis  took  up  the 
Book  and  went  on  to  the  meaning  of  the  Lord's  Supper, 
the  broken  bread  and  the  poured  out  wine ;  His  body, 
His  blood,  His  person,  His  life;  His  beautiful  sacrifice, 
His  atoning  sufferings ;  His  token  of  the  coming,  His 
sign  of  our  fellowship  till  we  meet  Him  in  the  perfect 
ages.  Would  they  so  eat,  would  they  so  drink,  in  grate- 
ful remembrance  of  Him,  of  what  He  has  done  in  the 
bright  hope  of  the  future,  and  what  He  still  intends  to  do. 

With  bowed  heads  they  all  partook.  There  were  ex- 
pressions of  deep  emotion,  too,  not  among  the  women 
and  children,  but  from  grown  men,  who  had  been  hard- 
ened and  calloused  in  wickedness,  men  who  had  lain 


INGATHERING  259 

under  the  paddle,  and  sworn  oaths  of  defiance ;  here  they 
were  to-day,  little  children  once  more,  looking  through 
tears  to  the  long-lost  Father  with  whom  they  had  been 
reconciled. 

The  meeting  dosed,  and  they  were  moving  away  in  all 
directions  to  speed  the  message.  There  was  no  other 
work  for  these  people,  they  had  no  other  calling.  True 
enough,  they  did  farming  and  matmaking  and  pegging  at 
boots  and  other  things  by  the  way,  but  these  were  merely 
a  something  to  live  en,  like  Paul's  tentmaking,  their 
work  was  to  preach  the  Gospel. 

An  old  reprobate  by  the  name  of  An,  with  his  horned 
hat  and  his  swagger  step,  came  by  the  meeting-house. 
He  liked  Willis.  "  If  you  want  me  to  believe  in  Willis  I'll 
do  that,  but  to  believe  in  God  Almighty  that  no  man 
ever  saw,  that's  too  much  for  me." 

"  How  do  you  do,  Mr.  An,  is  it  peace  ?  "  asked  Willis. 

"  Oh  yes,  not  so  bad  for  an  old  fellow.  How  do  things 
go  on  about  the  meetin'-house?" 

"There  are  many  coming,"  said  Willis,  "but  I  am 
waiting  and  waiting  for  an  old  gentleman  by  the  name  of 
An ;  he  hasn't  come  yet  I'm  almost  afraid  sometimes 
he's  missed  the  way." 

"  Ha,  ha !"  said  the  old  man.  "  Well,  moksa,  I  thank 
you  for  thinking  of  me,"  and  he  trudged  on.  Before  he 
reached  home  he  met  his  niece,  with  a  cloak  over  her  head, 
Mrs.  Ye,  a  friend  of  Mrs.  Kim.  She  saw  through  the 
fold  of  the  cloak  that  the  passer  was  her  uncle,  and  so 
lowered  it  and  said,  «*  Uncle,  is  it  peace  ?  " 

"  Well,  yes,  I  guess  it  is,"  said  the  old  man,  opening 
his  eyes,  "and  is  it  you,  Sup-sup-ee?"  (Disappoint- 
ment, so  called  because  she  was  born  a  girl  baby  instead 
of  a  boy.) 


260  THE  VANGUARD 

"  It  is,  and  uncle  I  want  to  say  that  God  is  calling  you. 
And  your  own  conscience  won't  let  you  live  in  peace  be- 
cause you  know  you  are  wrong  so  long  as  you  do  not 
believe  the  doctrine." 

"  No,  no,  don't  talk  that  kind  of  talk  now,  those  are 
very  nasty  words.  Why  I've  tried  to  believe  and  I  can't, 
it  won't  work  somehow." 

"  Uncle,  don't  you  know  what  the  trouble  is  ?  "  and  his 
niece  looked  straight  at  him. 

"  No,  I  don't." 

"  You  are  an  old  man,"  said  she, "  and  yet  you  are  not 
willing  to  give  up  your  wickedness." 

"  Now,  Disappointment,  it  isn't  that  at  all.  I'll  tell  you 
what  the  matter  is ;  the  Doctrine  is  all  right,  and  there  is 
Willis,  he  is  a  good  man,  but  there  is  a  kind  of  pestera- 
tion  goes  along  with  it  that  never  leaves  people  alone, 
always  chasin'  after  them.  I  don't  like  that." 

"  Uncle,"  said  she,  "  please,  your  days  are  short  and 
God  loves  you,  and  you've  turned  your  back  on  Him  all 
these  years." 

"  Now,  now,"  said  the  old  man,  "  away  you  go ;  this  is 
the  very  thing  I  don't  like,  this  kind  of  row,  and  calling 
on  God  and  all  that  kind  of  thing.  It  would  make  any 
man  feel  bad,"  and  the  old  fellow,  with  his  horned  cap 
and  remnant  of  a  swagger,  went  one  way,  and  Disap- 
pointment put  back  her  cloak,  to  hide  her  face,  and  went 
the  other. 

But  a  fire  had  been  kindled  in  this  Northland  that  had 
already  become  a  mighty  conflagration.  It  was  no  sal- 
aried movement, "  big  round  silver  bits,"  and  "  little  round 
silver  bits'"  had  no  place  in  it,  but  as  with  Mrs.  Ye  and 
Mrs.  Kim  and  a  host  of  others,  the  gratitude  that  was  in 
them  spoke  for  the  Gospel.  As  a  result,  on  every  hand 


INGATHERING  261 

there  were  miracles ;  drunkards  were  reformed,  gamblers, 
who  were  helpless  before,  were  rescued ;  men  and  boys  of 
unclean  habits  saved,  but  a  tourist  might  have  gone  by 
and  seen  nothing  except  here  and  there  a  flag. 


XXXV 
THE  LAST  OF  WINTERSHINE 

WINTERSHINE  had  been  over  the  land  and 
for  the  life  of  him  could  see  nothing  in  this 
missionary  business.  There  was  some  fairly 
good  shooting,  but  tigers,  like  converts,  were  few  and  far 
between.  The  race  of  people  was  hopeless,  he  wanted 
nothing  to  do  with  them,  and  yet  he  loaned  them  money 
on  mortgage  security  for  six  per  cent,  a  month,  seventy- 
two  per  cent,  a  year.  The  Koreans  had  failed  to  pay  and 
much  property  had  come  into  Wintershine's  possession, 
greatly  to  his  glory  in  the  eyes  of  the  people.  There 
were  many  foreign  merchants  in  the  country,  men  of 
honor,  who  had  nothing  to  do  with  this  sort  of  thing,  but 
Wintershine  was  pure  in  his  own  eyes,  and  could  say 
more  in  half  an  hour  about  the  right  and  wrong  of 
everything  than  all  of  the  others  combined.  He  had 
been  everywhere,  had  written  for  all  the  best  papers, 
and  was  quoted  by  all  the  governments,  as  an  au- 
thority on  every  conceivable  subject  that  pertained  to 
the  Orient.  His  exposure  of  missions  had  caused  Boards 
at  home  to  gasp  for  breath,  and  had  cut  in  half  the  con- 
tribution of  some  churches.  The  world  was  made  for  his 
delectation  and  when  it  failed  to  respond  in  every  particu- 
lar he  was  wrath  itself. 

The   natives,   who   know   all  about   every   foreigner, 
and  keep  a  tabulated  list  of  each  man's  excellencies  and 
defects,  had   considerable   down    in   favor  of   Winter- 
262 


THE  LAST  OF  WINTERSHINE    263 

shine.  He  was  rich,  he  was  haughty,  he  had  many 
guns,  much  money,  he  disdained  the  language — all 
marks  of  a  gentleman.  He  allowed  no  man  to  enter 
his  presence  without  special  permission — excellent.  He 
had  many  servants  and  kept  them  well  under  his  heel, — 
proving  that  he  was  born  to  command.  He  had  one 
serious  defect,  namely,  he  was  accustomed  to  kick  tres- 
passers with  his  own  foot,  which  was  neither  gentlemanly 
nor  dignified,  but  he  had  six  dogs  and  dogs  were  the  mark 
of  a  gentleman. 

On  the  other  hand  there  were  the  missionaries,  Willis 
and  his  friends ;  they  had  no  special  appearance,  were 
rather  common  in  their  movings  about,  not  much  in  the 
way  of  money,  no  guns  to  speak  of,  and  only  one  dog ; 
were  glad  to  learn  and  speak  any  kind  of  language,  some- 
times with  an  accent  to  make  you  smile,  and  associated 
all  their  days  with  the  commonest  kind  of  people,  even 
with  their  own  servants.  Their  moral  qualities  were 
good,  better  than  Wintershine's,  but  they  were  common 
clay,  that  was  evident,  and  Wintershine  was  an  aristocrat 

The  unchanged  East  would  rather  have  a  despot  to 
rule  over  them,  providing  he  rode  with  ribbons  of  scarlet 
and  beads  and  ermine,  than  a  saint,  who  had  no  halo,  and 
only  a  soft  voice  and  a  manner  to  treat  them  as  equals. 

At  home,  also,  Wintershine  had  his  influence.  With  a 
ready  pen  and  presses  waiting  for  your  words  who 
c6*uld  not  have  some  influence  ?  Willis  had  seen  it  but  it 
was  no  use  to  reply.  That  was  a  part  of  the  life  to 
which  he  had  given  himself,  and  he  could  expect  no 
other.  He  had  made  it  a  rule,  unless  called  for  by  his 
home  Board,  that  he  would  reply  to  no  criticisms  of  mis- 
sions and  would  never  write  to  justify  himself. 

The  purchase  of  land  around  the   i2Oth  meridian  is  a 


264  THE  VANGUARD 

fine  art  in  itself.  Few  men  ever  attain  to  the  degree  of 
knowledge  required  for  such  an  undertaking,  and  Winter- 
shine  knew  that  with  all  his  attainments,  he  was  in  no 
sense  competent  for  this.  He  must  have  help,  so  he 
asked  the  man  Fireblower.  Fireblower  had  bought  and 
sold  on  his  own  account,  and  his  heart  was  ever  ready  to 
respond  to  other  people's  requests,  notwithstanding  his 
masterful  disposition  and  his  occasional  fall-outs.  Yes,  he 
would  buy  it. 

"  How  much  do  you  want  ?  " 

"  Why  so  many  yards  this  way,  and  so  many  yards 
that  way,  and  so  many  the  other  way." 

"  But  you  can't  buy  by  the  yard,"  said  Fireblower, 
"  they  never  heard  of  a  yard.  You  buy  by  the  day's 
ploughing." 

"  Very  well,  get  me  two  days'  ploughing  on  that  hill- 
side," and  Fireblower  went  at  it  as  carefully  as  you  would 
undertake  to  capture  a  hornet's  nest.  He  probed  a  lit- 
tle here  and  found  out  this  ;  he  touched  it  up  a  little  on 
the  other  side  and  found  out  that,  carefully,  not  rushing 
matters  or  going  too  slowly.  In  a  day  or  two,  though  he 
had  not  seen  the  owner,  and  did  not  even  know  where  he 
lived,  Fireblower  had  the  deeds,  and  the  money  had 
been  paid  over  for  two  days'  ploughing  on  the  aforesaid 
hill.  While  men  slept,  Fireblower  had  got  his  friend  to 
get  some  one  else  to  do  it,  and  there  had  been  no  noise, 
whereas  if  a  foreigner  had  gone  at  it  in  his  ignorance  there 
had  resulted  a  fearful  commotion  and  no  purchase. 

Wintershine  thanked  Fireblower  heartily  and  told  his 
wife  that  he  had  about  concluded  to  change  his  views  re- 
garding missionaries.  They  did  understand  native  charac- 
ter, and  this  purchase  was  certainly  very  cleverly  done. 
He  would  get  stakes  made  and  mark  out  his  land  next 


THE  LAST  OF  WINTERSHINE    265 

day.  Said  he,  "  This  buying  by  the  day's  ploughing,  too, 
is  very  good,  indeed ;  nothing  definite  about  it,  so  you 
can  stake  it  just  where  you  please,  and  none  can  object." 

"  Get  all  you  can,  Sam,"  said  Mrs.  Wintershine. 
"  These  people  have  no  use  for  their  land,"  so  Sam  had 
about  a  hundred  stakes  made  long  and  sharp  and  heavy. 
He  owned  a  sledge-hammer  which  would  help  out  beauti- 
fully. Next  day  with  the  aid  of  two  coolies  and  his  boy 
he  went  at  it  bright  and  early. 

"  Drive  this  one  in  here,"  said  Wintershine,  and  in  it 
went  full  length,  so  that  even  a  span  of  horses  could  not 
shake  it. 

"  Put  the  next  here,"  and  so  on  until,  in  his  circuit,  he 
reached  a  large  grave  and  said,  "  Drive  this  one  in  here." 

"  But,  master,  you  can't  do  that,"  said  the  boy,  waving 
his  hand. 

"  Drive  that  in  at  once ;  don't  talk  to  me.  I  have 
bought  this  land,"  said  Wintershine,  and  down  went  the 
stake  right  into  the  head  of  an  ancestral  grave ;  another 
and  still  another,  over  all  the  hillside,  spearing  the  an- 
cestors of  the  village  and  taking  in  about  ten  days' 
ploughing,  according  to  native  reckoning. 

Ere  long  the  task  was  finished,  and  Wintershine  re- 
turned home  in  triumph,  to  show  his  wife  what  a  lovely 
estate  they  had  climbing  over  the  hill.  In  an  hour  or  so 
three  or  four  men  in  very  white  clothing  were  seen  ges- 
ticulating wildly  on  the  Wintershine  estate.  One  of  them 
turned  suddenly,  threw  his  hat  off  and  made  frantic 
efforts  to  pull  up  a  stake,  but  it  had  been  driven  in  with 
a  ten  pound  hammer  wielded  by  a  stout-backed  coolie. 
Wintershine  went  out  in  his  wrath  to  inquire.  "  What 
in  the  world  do  you  want  here  ? "  said  Wintershine  in 
English. 


266  THE   VANGUARD 

"  E  got  ooree  chosang-a  mayo,"  replied  the  man  in 
Korean,  foaming  at  the  mouth.  Neither  understood  the 
other. 

"  Get  out  at  once,"  said  Wintershine. 

"  E  got  keun  eereeo,"  replied  the  man,  shaking  like  an 
aspen  leaf. 

Wintershine  gave  him  two  kicks  and  sent  him  tumbling 
over  the  hillside.  The  others  had  run  off.  The  man  did 
not  attempt  to  pick  himself  up,  but  lay  just  as  he  had 
fallen,  and  bellowed  at  the  top  of  his  voice.  You  could 
hear  him  all  down  the  valley  crying  just  as  children  do, 
but  with  a  voice  fifty  years  old.  Wintershine  then  went 
home  and  told  his  wife  that  he  had  just  settled  a  little 
matter  of  trespassing  upon  their  ground  and  that  it  would 
teach  them  a  lesson,  and  there  would  be  no  more  of  it. 
Mrs.  Wintershine  did  admire  Sam's  dispatch  and  knowl- 
edge of  human  nature.  Such  a  lovely  place  as  it  would 
make,  too,  when  all  those  graves  were  cleared  off. 

Wintershine  sat  down  to  enjoy  a  cigarette  and  a  new 
novel  just  come  to  hand,  feeling  a  sense  of  security  in  his 
newly  acquired  possession.  An  hour  had  not  passed 
when  he  looked  out,  and  lo,  a  thousand  people,  more  or 
less,  were  upon  his  land,  nearly  all  well  dressed,  but 
shouting  and  gesticulating  as  though  their  friends  had 
fallen  overboard  into  the  sea.  Three  or  four  coolies  had 
a  long  rope  and  a  pry,  and  out  the  stakes  were  coming 
one  by  one.  Every  man  then  helped  to  give  them  a 
fling  and  away  they  went  down  into  the  valley. 

"  This  is  brazen  effrontery,"  said  Wintershine,  and  took 
down  his  gun  and  hurried  out,  but  the  crowd  were  inter- 
ested in  pulling  up  stakes,  and  did  not  see  him  till  he  was 
close  up,  and  then  he  pretended  to  make  ready.  But 
they  were  "  raised  "  by  this  time,  and  had  no  fear  of  shot- 


THE  LAST  OF  WINTERSHINE    267 

guns.  Each  man  caught  for  a  stone  and  started  after 
him,  and  Wintershine  was  never  before  as  near  the  end 
of  his  mortal  existence.  He  got  safely  inside  his  house, 
and  the  crowd  hastened  back  to  set  free  their  distressed 
ancestors.  But  the  boy  rushing  in  shouted,  M  Master, 
they  say  when  night  comes,  they  will  burn  the  house  and 
kill  you  and  missus."  In  the  next  hour  or  so  Wintershine 
packed  up  a  few  things,  and  got  the  black  satin  dog  into 
its  basket,  and  the  others  by  a  string.  He  then  put  all 
the  rest  of  his  goods  in  charge  of  his  boy,  and  said, 
"  Look  here,  I  hold  you  responsible  to  look  after  these 
till  we  return."  They  sailed  out  in  their  own  boat  and 
got  on  board  a  Japanese  steamer,  and  went  on  a  long 
cruise  to  the  South  Sea  Islands. 

McKechern  had  passed  and  seen  the  disturbance,  and 
called  to  see  Willis  and  Plum.  After  their  greeting,  said 
he,  •*  There's  an  unco  splore  doon  there  at  Wintershine's  ; 
I  never  saw  the  like  o'  it.  The  toon  folk  are  a'  aboot  his 
ears  like  a  wheen  o'  clegs." 

«  What's  a  wheen  o'  clegs  ?  "  asked  Plum. 

"  Clegs  ?    Why  thae  beasties  that  sting  the  horses." 

"  Whatever  has  the  man  been  up  to  now  ?  " 

"  Hoch !  he's  an  awfu'  like  fushionless  carle,"  said  Mc- 
Kechern. "  He's  been  oot  spearin'  a'  the  ancestors  o'  the 
village.  It  seems  he's  cut  the  heed  off  yin,  and  played  dirl 
wi'  anither,  tin  the  toon's  fair  daft,  and  he  and  the  wife's 
had  to  flee.  I  feel  for  her  puir  buddie,  I'm  telt  she  had  a 
sinkin'  spell  and  was  nigh  geein'  up  the  ghaist." 

Plum  could  not  contain  himself  longer  over  this  ac- 
count, and  gave  a  guffaw. 

"Awd,"  continued  McKechern,  "we  musna  mak 
light  o'  these  things.  I  suppose  hell  awa  noo  and 
write  aboot  missionaries.  He  kens  mair  aboot  hoo  the 


268  THE  VANGUARD 

Lord's  wairk  ought  to  be  done  than  ony  man  I've  ever 
seen." 

Wintershine  had  time,  it  seems,  to  think  all  these 
doings  over,  and  he  wrote  several  letters  giving  his  conclu- 
sions. One  was  entitled,  "  The  Real  Cause  of  the  Boxer 
Rising,"  due,  he  said,  to  Protestant  missionaries  who 
lacked  judgment,  and  a  knowledge  of  native  character 
and  superstition.  Another  was,  "  The  Missionary  and 
Real  Estate,"  in  which  he  proved  that  modern  missionary 
effort  was  largely  a  race  on  the  part  of  the  individual  to 
see  who  could  make  the  most  out  of  land.  He  himself 
had  been  shamefully  swindled  by  one  of  them  in  this  very 
matter  (with  all  his  other  shortcomings  to  have  this 
heaped  upon  him — poor  Fireblower ! ).  His  third  was 
headed,  "  The  Present  Status  in  Korea,"  in  which  he 
showed  how  many  dangers  existed  as  a  result  of  mis- 
guided fanatical  propaganda.  The  natives  were  sheep  to 
begin  with,  but  were  gradually  becoming  wolves  by  reason 
of  the  missionary.  Shortly,  no  man's  life  would  be  safe. 
They  claimed  to  have  thousands  of  real  converts,  he  had 
been  there  for  years  and  had  not  seen  two  that  would 
answer  to  the  name. 

Shoreland  had  read  these  letters  and  made  reference  to 
them  in  a  half-joking  way  in  a  note  to  Willis,  but  even 
Shoreland  wondered.  Here  they  were,  written  seemingly 
by  a  sensible  man,  and  these  were  his  conclusions.  Some 
day  he  would  go  East  again  and  have  a  look  for  himself. 


XXXVI 
THE  SORROWS  OF  PUFFSNAUBER 

WINTERSHINE  had  gone,  and,  as  mentioned 
before,  Puflsnauber  had  returned,  but  a  change 
had  come  over  the  latter,  so  that  instead  of 
being  loud,  noisy,  and  aggressive  he  was  meek,  quiet  and 
unobtrusive.  •  No  special  conversion  had  befallen  him, 
but  his  environment  was  changed.  Kozie  had  been 
thrown  away  like  a  toy  no  longer  cared  for,  and  her  tears 
were  as  nothing  to  call  forth  pity.  He  had  gone  home 
in  lordly  magnificence,  to  cast  eyes  here  and  there  in 
search  of  some  fair  one,  who  would  accompany  him  to 
the  charms  of  the  East.  His  time  had  come  and  she 
was  on  hand,  his  fate.  Yes,  he  must  propose  to  her  in  spite 
of  her  keen  hawk-eye  and  beak  to  correspond.  She  con- 
sented, and  they  were  married.  Out  over  the  rolling  bil- 
lows came  Puffsnauber  and  wife  number  two,  and  here  fol- 
lows his  case,  as  talked  over  by  the  Koreans  and  under- 
stood by  the  Dragon,  the  chore  boy,  and  all  the  rest  of 
the  Far  East  The  Puflsnaubers  landed  at  the  port  but 
there  was  no  welcome,  and  no  one  was  interested  in 
their  coming. 

"  Can  this  be  the  place  where  Nick  has  lived  these 
many  years,"  thought  she,  «  with  its  dreary  hills  ?  Where 
are  the  arbors  and  flowers  and  bungalow  and  friends  he 
talked  of?  Probably  it  will  all  be  right  when  he  comes 
to  take  me  off."  Nicodemus  Puffsnauber  returned  with  a 
dull  leaden  look  in  his  eye. 

269 


270  THE   VANGUARD 

"  Ve  can  get  the  bungalow  after  von  liddle,  in  the 
meantimes  ve  vill  live  in  a  Shinese  godown." 

"  Godown,  what  is  that  ?  "  she  asks. 

"  A  place  vere  you  poot  tings,  you  know,"  said  Nick. 

"  A  barn,  you  mean,  you  great  idiot !  " 

"  Veil  then,  a  parn  if  you  blease." 

"  Have  I  come  all  the  way  out  here  to  live  with  rats 
and  Chinamen  in  a  barn  ?  "  screamed  she.  "  You  have 
lied  when  you  said  you  had  a  place  to  live  in." 

"  Come,  come,  Liebchen,"  was  the  meek  reply.  "  I  vill 
make  all  tings  right."  And  they  were  bundled  out  of 
the  ship  and  into  a  sampan. 

She  was  a  woman  of  energy,  and  there  being  no  help 
for  it,  she  turned  that  barn  inside  out,  and  by  dint  of  scrap- 
ing and  scouring  made  it  almost  habitable,  but  the  yellow 
charms  of  the  Far  East — oh !  where  were  they  ?  She 
was  a  thousand  miles  from  hope,  and  ten  thousand  from 
happiness.  She  was  wife  of  one  of  the  least  in  his  service 
and  little  better  than  a  Chinese  boy.  A  ghastly  gangrene 
took  possession  of  her  soul  and  she  resolved  to  take  the 
worth  of  time  and  eternity  out  of  the  wretch  that  had 
brought  her  there. 

The  house  she  spread  through  with  tidies  and  knick- 
knacks  peculiar  to  women.  When  later  they  moved 
into  his  old  quarters  every  cent  went  for  fancy 
chairs  and  embroideries.  Not  a  corner  nor  an  armchair 
was  there  that  he  could  call  his  own.  His  boots  and  ex- 
pensive pantaloons  that  formerly  decorated  the  best  walls 
of  the  bungalow  were  consigned  to  the  woodshed.  The 
front  room  was  fitted  up  for  afternoon  callers.  Guns  and 
pipes  there  were  none. 

The  Far  East  has  not  seen  a  meeker  man  since  the  days 
of  the  ancients.  He  was  but  an  unbroken  colt  of  forty-six 


THE  SORROWS  OF  PUFFSNAUBER  271 

summers  when  the  second  Mrs.  Puffsnauber  took  him  in 
hand.  Breaking  in  was  a  lively  ordeal.  The  Dragon 
often  heard  it  in  progress,  sometimes  mingled  with  pro- 
fane words,  but  the  work  she  did  thoroughly,  for  his 
spirit  was  broken  meeker  than  Moses'.  He  had  been  a 
first-rate  power  in  the  days  of  the  first  Mrs.  Puffsnauber, 
now  behold  him  reduced  to  the  rank  of  a  mere  tributary 
state. 

Once,  on  a  dark  unpropitious  midnight,  when  rain  was 
driving  and  tigers  were  abroad  he  had  to  walk  two  miles  for 
a  foreign  doctor.  Mrs.  Puffsnauber  was  in  command  and 
a  child  was  born.  Night  after  night  the  husband  and 
father  walked  the  floor,  in  a  vain  attempt  to  sooth  this 
newest  and  most  unreasonable  of  all  Puffsnaubers,  but 
the  spirit  of  mischief  was  born  in  it,  and  even  a  father's 
love  wore  thin  in  his  sleepless  efforts. 

"  Mr.  Puffsnauber  is  so  stupid  with  the  baby  I  can  do 
nothing  with  him,"  said  the  grateful  wife  to  the  ladies 
who  called.  "  If  I  could  only  sharpen  his  wits  a  little." 

"  All  de  same  you  sharpen  your  store  teeth,"  said  he. 
But  she  gave  him  a  look  such  as  brings  the  \vild  beast 
down  before  its  tamer.  Mr.  Puffsnauber  wan,  and  almost 
wasted,  lingered  on,  until  one  day  a  dire  disaster  befell 
the  home. 

It  had  sprinkled  rain  and  Mrs.  Puffsnauber  told  the 
servant  to  take  an  umbrella  (oosanee),  to  Mr.  Puffsnauber 
at  the  office.  The  servant  understood  her  to  say  ,  "  Take 
a  goose  (kaysanee),  to  Mr.  Puffsnauber."  So  he  tied  a 
string  to  the  neck  of  the  only  goose  in  the  back  yard,  and 
went  a  quarter  of  a  mile,  dragging  it  behind  him,  the  bird, 
all  the  while,  setting  its  feet  and  sliding  with  outstretched 
wings  most  unwillingly.  Puffsnauber  lifted  up  his  eyes 
towards  the  middle  of  the  afternoon,  and  there  was  his 


272  THE  VANGUARD 

Korean  servant  coming,  pulling  what  looked  like  a  baby's 
carriage.  On  nearer  approach  he  saw  it  was  not  the  car- 
riage but  their  goose  drawn  by  the  neck. 

**  Vhy  in  de  name  o'  common  sense  you  come  draggin* 
that  goose?"  said  Puflsnauber. 

"  Missus  say  come." 

*  What  missus  ?  Go  home,  you  idiot,  all  at  once,  or  I 
vfll  preak  your  head." 

Nothing  remained  for  the  servant  but  to  slide  the  goose 
home  again. 

"Have  you  taken  the  kaysarue?"  said  Mrs.  Puffs- 
nauber. 

"  Yes,  but  master  sent  it  back." 

"  Sent  it  back  ?  Go  again  at  once,  you  rascal,  and  do 
as  you  are  told,"  and  the  goose  slid  for  the  second  time 
all  the  way  to  the  landing  jetty.  By  this  time  Puflsnau- 
ber was  roused. 

0  Vhy,  vhy,"  says  he,  M  all  the  time  you  pring  dis 
goose  ? "  Meanwhile  a  group  of  pleasant  looking 
Koreans  was  standing  by  as  spectators. 

"  Me  no  savez,"  said  the  boy. 

"  You  no  savez  anytings,  you  idiot,"  said  Puffsnauber, 
his  ancient  spirit  overcoming  him,  and  with  one  clip  he 
felled  the  boy,  and  with  a  kick  that  would  have  levelled 
the  tower  of  Pisa,  he  lifted  the  goose  clear  over  the  jetty. 
The  bird  expired  from  the  violence  of  the  contusion,  and 
the  boy  left  without  his  wages  and  spent  the  night  in  the 
Dragon's  quarters.  He  said  Puflsnauber  had  gone  crazy. 

There  was  a  straightening  of  accounts  later  on  at  the 
Puflsnaubers',  that  sounded  like  the  struggles  of  fifty  or 
more  miners  imprisoned  in  a  shaft. 

Puflsnauber's  hair  is  turning  gray,  and  the  clothes  he 
used  to  wear  are  all  taken  in  along  the  back.  He  says 


THE  SORROWS  OF  PUFFSNAUBER  273 

little.  Sometimes  he  dreams  of  a  pair  of  almond  eyes 
looking  submissive  and  pityingly,  and  Mrs.  Puffsnauber 
overheard  him  say  in  his  wanderings,  "  Mine  Kozie  come 
back,  mother  of  mischief,  dis  von  is  awful,  and  mine 
house  is  von  hell." 

"  I'll  find  who  Kozie  is,  and  what  mischief  he  is  up  to 
now,"  said  the  second  Mrs.  Puffsnauber. 

"  I  notice,"  said  the  Dragon,  on  hearing  this  account, 
"  that  the  law  of  God  works  with  regard  to  unbelievers 
as  well  as  Christians." 


XXXVII 
BUILDING  THE  CHURCH 

THE  Dragon  was  sitting  on  the  steps  as  in  days 
gone  by,  talking  to  Yap.  Said  he,  "  Yap,  old 
dog,  we  are  going  to  have  a  mighty  worship- 
house  here  one  of  these  days." 

Yap's  eyes  blinked. 

"  They  are  hauling  tiles  and  stones  and  timbers  from 
the  north,  south,  east  and  west,  and  by  and  by  they  will 
stand  on  end,  Yap,  these  timbers  will,  and  your  eyes  will 
wonder  when  you  see  it." 

Yap  yawned  away  back  to  his  ears,  and  his  tongue 
came  out  long  and  curled  up,  but  still  the  Dragon  went 
on. 

"  When  this  temple  is  built,  then  everything  will  all  be 
right  except  the  master,  he  isn't  married.  Who  was  it 
he  used  to  talk  about,  Yap,  years  ago  ?  But  he's  given 
it  all  up,  hasn't  he  ?  " 

Yap  yawned  again  and  gave  a  scream  into  the  bargain. 
These  conversations  wearied  him  fearfully,  but  it  was  the 
Dragon's  way  of  thinking  out  loud,  and  Yap  had  to  sit 
and  listen. 

All  hearts  and  hands  were  into  the  building  of  the 
Church  that  was  to  stand  on  the  hill  and  overlook  the 
city.  Several  thousand  dollars  had  been  collected  from 
the  native  Christians,  and  the  Church  in  America  had 
lent  them  a  hand,  so  that  now  the  way  was  clear,  just  as 
Willis  had  foreseen.  They  had  sent  parties  up  the  Tatong 
to  the  place  where  the  thousand-year  timbers  grow,  and 
274 


BUILDING  THE  CHURCH    275 

there,  with  many  crashings  and  shoutings  along  the 
mountainside  they  singled  out  the  giants  that  were  to 
stand  sentry  in  the  meeting-house.  This  was  no  ordinary 
putting  up  of  a  church,  not  at  all ;  to  these  simple  hearted 
ones,  it  was  a  great  epoch  in  the  history  of  the  East. 
Every  log  that  bounded  over  the  hill  and  rolled  down 
to  the  riverside,  was  as  precious  as  a  brazen  pillar  in  the 
Temple  of  Solomon.  Over  they  went  one  by  one,  the 
sharp  notes  of  the  axe  ringing  out  over  the  hills.  Songs 
and  prayers  mingled  with  it.  Then  the  logs  were  stripped 
and  cut  through  at  the  ends,  and  bound  together  with 
thongs  of  creeper,  tough  as  steel  hawsers,  that  grow 
of  themselves  along  the  hillsides  for  the  children  of  the 
East,  who  can  buy  no  strong  ropes  to  use. 

Ko  and  Pang  were  not  raftsmen  or  skilled  with  the 
axe,  but  they  went  along  to  see  all  that  was  done,  and 
to  rejoice  in  it. 

At  the  appointed  time  the  rains  came  and  the  rafts 
moved  down  the  river.  There  was  one  continual  inquiry 
along  the  bank :  Where  have  you  come  from  ?  Where 
are  you  going  ?  And  with  all  these  white  logs,  what  do 
you  intend  to  do  ?  This  was  the  invitation  to  tell  and 
explain  so  that  every  man  might  know. 

The  skilled  raftsmen  with  their  long  poles  guided,  and 
a  very  responsible  tiling  it  is  to  be  guide  of  a  raft  with  a 
lot  of  people  on  board ;  to  watch  ahead  and  behind  at  the 
same  time;  to  keep  off  the  rocks  and  yet  not  stick  fast  in 
the  shallows ;  to  find  tile  right  place  to  take  the  dash 
across  the  rapids. 

"  To  me,"  said  Ko,  "  this  rafting  is  like  running  the 
Church,  and  tile  moksa  is  the  man  with  the  guiding  pole. 
If  we  bother  Sung  here,  and  try  our  hands,  we  would  be 
onto  the  rocks." 


276  THE   VANGUARD 

"  Yea-a,"  said  Sung,  "  that's  where  you'd  be." 

"  There's  a  rock  there  that  looks  just  like  the  Inde- 
pendence Club  and  sits  so  sweet  on  the  water,  you'd  think 
you  could  hook  it  on  and  take  it  with  you,  but  you  can't. 
If  we  hook  on  we  stick  fast  and  don't  go  anywhere.  The 
Church  must  be  free  of  the  world  to  move  along  as 
it  ought  to,"  and  so  these  Orientals  meditated  and  pon- 
dered and  drew  their  illustrations,  and  all  the  time  the 
raft  of  timbers  for  the  Church  was  sweeping  on  past  the 
shallows  and  dangers  till  it  reached  the  city  and  lay  out 
at  its  feet  on  the  river  flats. 

There  they  lay  waiting,  while  the  long  procession  of 
ponies,  never  ending,  with  the  clink  of  the  steel  rings 
under  the  chin,  went  laboring  up  the  hill,  with  pack  loads 
of  stones,  and  tiles,  and  sand,  and  red  earth,  heaps  upon 
heaps.  A  part  of  the  hill  had  been  dug  away  and 
levelled  off  so  as  to  get  the  foundations  deep  and  solid. 
Into  the  trenches  went  the  stones,  and  the  mortar,  and 
twenty  men  working  a  log  pounder  that  was  hung  from 
beams  stacked  on  end,  kept  up  the  thud,  thud,  thud, 
shaking  the  earth  and  levelling  down  the  broken  stones 
that  were  piled  in. 

The  hill  was  not  far  from  where  Plum  had  shot  the 
mad  dog  years  before,  and  was  a  favorite  airing  place  for 
the  city,  so  they  all  came  out  to  watch  it  day  by  day, 
smoking  long  pipes  some  of  them,  discussing  the  whole 
question,  and  giving  advice  to  the  workmen  as  to  how 
this  and  that  ought  to  be  done. 

Meanwhile  the  raft,  log  after  log,  had  gone  moving  up 
the  hill.  Fifty  men  would  hook  on  to  one,  and  by  cross- 
bars and  shoulder  rests  so  distribute  the  weight,  that,  on 
a  given  signal,  they  all  bent  their  shoulders  and  away 
went  the  log  as  light  as  a  sunbeam.  Soon  all  the  white 


BUILDING   THE  CHURCH    277 

logs  lay  high  upon  the  hill.  Some  were  for  posts  and 
some  must  be  cut  up  into  boards  and  strips.  Those, 
thus  selected,  were  turned  head  to  the  ground,  the  mid- 
dle resting  over  another  log  and  the  end  in  the  air.  One 
sawyer  would  climb  up  and  stand  on  the  log  while  the 
other  remained  below  and  there  they  would  seesaw  all 
day  long  preparing  the  boards  for  this  wonderful  house. 

In  the  congregation  of  white  dresses  you  would  fre- 
quently see  dark  coats  moving  about  with  a  different 
poise  to  the  shoulders  and  a  lighter  spring  to  the  heel. 
These  were  Western  people.  One  was  tall,  with  a  slight 
stoop  and  a  long  coat,  that  was  Watson ;  another,  a  short 
plump  man,  who,  when  he  took  his  hat  off  to  wipe  his 
brow,  wiped  all  the  way  back,  that  was  Plum ;  another  a 
neat,  natty  man  with  pointed  beard,  that  was  the  doctor ; 
and  once  there  was  seen  a  thin  man,  touched  with  gray, 
and  with  black  patches  of  beard  here  and  there  over  his 
hollow  cheeks,  and  an  eye  that  had  found  peace  through 
infinite  suffering,  that  was  McKechern,  and  last,  and  the 
one  to  whom  all  eyes  turned,  tall  and  straight,  with  light 
hair  and  honest  face,  touched  with  magnetic  power,  that 
was  Willis. 

Among  the  natives,  too,  special  ones  were  noticed  on 
the  hillside.  Here  was  a  young  man  with  fearless  eye, 
stiff  back,  and  rounded  muscle,  dressed  in  cleanest  white, 
a  red  girdle  string  and  half  turban  round  his  head,  that 
was  the  Dragon.  Near  him  was  a  spotted  terrier  intent 
on  some  hole  that  he  had  found,  digging  for  dear  life  and 
making  the  earth  fly.  He  was  known  to  all  the  Church 
as  the  moksa's  dog  Yap.  Yonder  a  Korean  with  small- 
rimmed  hat,  a  droop  to  his  dress,  and  a  kind,  pleasant 
face,  that  was  Kim.  Here,  an  older  man,  with  a  wrinkle 
of  fun  round  the  corner  of  his  eye,  and  a  soft  husky  tone 


278  THE   VANGUARD 

to  his  voice,  that  was  Pang.  There  went  some  one  at  a 
sharp,  quick  pace,  with  his  coat  streaming  away  behind 
and  a  pair  of  scarlet  pantaloons  showing  from  under- 
neath, his  hat  a  little  to  one  side,  and  his  face  heavy  and 
unattractive,  that  was  Ko. 

Sometimes  the  ladies  would  come  out  to  watch,  Miss 
Stillman,  Mrs.  Plum,  the  lady  physician. 

"  Which  of  these  is  the  wife  of  Willis,  moksa  ?  "  asked 
an  old  workman. 

"  He  has  no  wife,"  says  Kim. 

"  Well !  aren't  they  strange,  these  Western  people,  not 
to  want  to  marry." 

"  But  the  moksa  would  have  married,"  said  Kim,  "  only 
the  one  he  was  engaged  to  must  have  died,  I  think,  at 
any  rate  her  name  has  disappeared." 

"  Ah,  yes,  he  loved  her,  so  he  wouldn't  marry  any  one 
else.  But  that  shows  a  good  heart,"  says  the  old  man, 
and  so  the  moksa 's  private  affairs  were  discussed  by  the 
workmen  and  the  onlooking  public. 

Frequently,  too,  the  women  would  come  out  with 
covered  heads  to  see  how  the  work  progressed,  Mrs. 
Kim,  Mrs.  Ye,  and  others. 

And  so  the  foundations  were  finished  and  ready  for  the 
posts,  and  the  mighty  trusses  to  span  forty  feet  and  bear 
up  the  tiled  roof,  were  being  thought  out. 

"  I'll  give  it  up,"  said  the  old  contractor.  "  You  can't 
span  forty  feet  and  hold  five  thousand  tiles.  Put  your 
head  on  a  wooden  pillow  and  your  heels  on  the  door-sill 
and  let  somebody  sit  on  you  ?  You  can't  do  it,  your 
back  will  go  down." 

"  Uncle,"  says  Plum,  "  you  were  born  before  I  was,  and 
you  have  no  end  of  chajoo  [ability],  but  just  wait  now 
and  we'll  span  this  and  hold  up  these  tiles." 


BUILDING  THE  CHURCH    279 

Plum  drew  many  pictures  and  worked  over  figures  that 
the  old  contractor  saw  no  sense  in,  and  the  young  doctor 
helped.  Willis  stood  by.  He  knew  nothing  about  how 
pounds  of  weight  ought  to  be  distributed  round  a  triangle, 
but  in  the  adjustment  of  this  particular  one  he  was  most 
deeply  interested. 

"  This  will  do  it,"  said  Plum,  "  this  beam  so  many 
inches  by  so  many,  mortised  here  and  braced  there,  and 
set  thus,  will  span  it,  hold  all  the  tiles,  and  not  bend  in 
the  back." 

They  made  a  little  one  first,  as  model,  and  hung  a 
weight  on  it,  and  the  old  contractor  looked  on  half  stupe- 
fied and  said, "  Well  I  say,  since  the  days  of  Yo  and  Soon, 
no  man  ever  saw  a  house  frame  made  after  that  fashion. 
When  I  see  such  things  I  am  reminded  that  my  pil- 
grimage is  nearly  over." 

A  few  days  later  up  went  the  trusses,  hoisted  by  block 
and  tackle,  another  mystery  of  the  West  Each  one 
came  down  squarely  in  its  place,  on  the  twenty-foot  sentry 
posts.  They  were  then  locked  together  and  all  the 
world  looked  on. 

It  was  not  only  the  talk  of  the  town  but  of  all  the 
northland.  Christians  living  at  a  distance  felt  it  their 
duty  to  make  a  pilgrimage  and  see  this  house,  that  was 
larger  than  the  governor's  Yamen  and  higher  than  any 
ever  built  outside  of  the  capital. 

Out  of  those  lazy  inexpressive  logs  that  had  floated 
down  the  Tatong,  came  forth  rafters,  joists,  studding,  lath- 
ing, flooring,  even  windows  and  doors,  cut  by  hand,  inch 
by  inch,  just  as  Noah  built  the  ark.  Growth  is  imper- 
ceptible, and  by  this  process  the  building  came  into  being, 
until  the  mud  for  the  tiles,  clod  after  clod,  had  been  rolled, 
and  pitched,  and  caught,  and  flapped  down  on  the  sheet- 


280  THE  VANGUARD 

ing,  and  the  tile  had  gone  "  squat "  on  top  in  its  place  of 
rest.  Thus  it  grew  till  the  roof  was  capped,  and  the  walls 
were  closed,  and  the  flooring  laid,  and  the  doors  hung, 
and  the  windows  placed,  and  the  house  was  finished. 

Some  of  those  employed  were  not  Christians.  They 
laid  their  saws  back  in  the  boxes,  and  the  masons 
wiped  off  their  trowels,  and  the  old  contractor  straightened 
himself  up,  and  took  a  final  look,  and  Ko  walked  round 
with  them  to  see. 

"  I'll  tell  you,"  says  Ko,  "  I've  been  reading  that  part 
of  God's  Book  called  the  Old  Covenant,  and  there  is  a 
wonderful  piece  of  building  there." 

"  Indeed,"  said  the  men,  "  was  it  a  house  ?  " 

"  No,"  said  Ko,  "  it  was  a  great  ship.  It  came  about 
in  this  way ;  the  world  you  know  had  grown  very  wicked^ 
so  bad  that  God  couldn't  look  at  it.  It  was  soiled  all 
over,  and  God  said  He  would  wash  it  with  water  just  as 
you  wash  your  trowel,  or  your  mortar  board.  But  you 
see  if  God  turned  on  all  the  water  needed  the  men  would 
be  drowned,  wouldn't  they  ?  " 

"  I  should  think  so,"  said  they. 

"  That  was  it,  so  He  ordered  a  great  ship  made  and  they 
worked  one  hundred  and  twenty  years  to  finish  it,  and 
anybody  could  get  on  board  that  liked.  The  carpen- 
ters worked  away  and  laughed  and  said, '  We  don't  think 
God  will  do  it,'  and,  I  imagine,  they  finished  it  and  did 
up  their  tools,  and  took  a  last  look,  and  the  owner  said 
to  them, '  Now,  men,  bring  your  families  and  get  on  board, 
for  God  is  going  to  turn  on  the  water ;  that's  why  we've 
built  the  ship.'  But  they  only  laughed  and  said,  '  Oh 
it's  a  great  ship,  but  He  wouldn't  do  that ; '  and  they  all 
went  home  and,  do  you  know,  the  floods  came  and  the 
very  men  that  built  the  ship  were  all  lost.  I'm  anxious," 


BUILDING  THE  CHURCH    281 

said  Ko,  «  Tve  been  thinking  that  if  some  of  you  men 
fefled  to  trust  in  Jesus,  after  building  His  house  it  would 
be  like  those  carpentbers,"  And  they  walked  away  each 
one  with  his  own  thoughts. 


XXXVIII 
THE  DRAGON'S  MARRIAGE 

THE  Dragon  was  old,  he  was  over  twenty,  and 
not  yet  married.  He  had  waited  long,  for,  as  a 
younger  brother  in  Korea  should  never  marry 
before  an  older,  much  less  should  a  servant  before  his 
master.  But  he  had  tarried  in  vain,  and  his  heart  was 
sick.  Even  the  photograph  his  master  kept  on  his  table, 
and  used  to  look  at  was  gone.  He  must  now  cast  about 
on  his  own  account.  He  had  been  betrothed,  yes,  years 
ago,  when  he  was  a  baby,  but  his  parents  were  dead  and 
that  agreement  had  been  lost ;  he  must  look  for  himself 
now  or  go  unmarried. 

He  wanted  a  wife, 

First, — One  whose  heart  was  right,  and  whose  tongue 
was  governed, — namely,  a  good  Christian. 

Second, — He'd  like  her  to  know  how  to  sew,  and  cook, 
and  be  clean. 

Third, — She  must  read,  and  write,  and  have  some 
ability  (chajod). 

Fourth, — Let  her  be  pretty  withal,  with  neat  hands  and 
feet,  and  hair  well  done  up. 

Fifth, — Not  too  mild,  and  some  character  of  her  own. 

The  Dragon's  mind  was  all  made  up  before  he  ever 
began  to  think  of  these  things  or  jot  them  down,  but  he 
pretended  to  himself  that  he  was  taking  a  fresh  start  in 
the  matter,  and  looking  with  unbiassed  eye,  and  with 
these  five  points  in  mind.  But,  however  wide  he  wan- 
282 


THE   DRAGON'S   MARRIAGE  283 

dered,  he  always  came  back  to  one  person,  Chungee,  the 
best  scholar  in  Miss  Stillman's  school,  whose  name  meant 
Bright  and  Clever,  a  younger  sister  of  Mrs.  Kim.  He 
had  seen  Chungee  across  the  meeting-house,  and  she  had 
looked  at  him,  but  had  turned  away.  When  her  cloak 
was  off  her  head,  it  was  the  poise  he  liked,  and  the  ex- 
pression ;  when  it  was  on  and  she  walked  out  he  liked  the 
step.  But  he  had  looked  only ;  he  had  heard  her  voice 
but  had  never  spoken  to  Chungee.  Reports  concerning 
her  were  excellent. 

The  Dragon  launched  out  on  no  more  projects  with- 
out praying  first,  and  asking  the  moksa  as  well.  He  had 
come  to  dire  grief  once,  on  less  than  the  marriage  ques- 
tion. Let  him  be  sure  that  it  was  right  and  that  his  inner 
thought  was  as  it  ought  to  be.  There  were  no  long  in- 
troductions or  finishes  about  the  Dragon's  prayers,  he 
spoke  reverently  but  straight  to  the  point.  This  was  the 
manner  of  the  great  western  world  to  him,  and  the 
Dragon  loved  the  West. 

One  day  he  began,  "  Moksa,  I  have  something  to  say." 

"  Say  on,  Dragon." 

"  Well,  eh — eh,  I'm  thinking  of  marrying." 

"  Indeed,  with  whom  will  you  marry  ?  "  asked  Willis. 

"  With  Chungee,  Mrs.  Kim's  sister." 

"  Have  you  asked  her,  does  she  know  ?  " 

"  Oh  no,"  said  the  Dragon,  "  not  yet,  but  that  part  is 
easy  enough." 

"  Hadn't  you  better  ask  her  first  before  you  decide 
to  marry  her  ?  " 

"  Well  yes,  he  would  ask,  if  the  moksa  thought  well 
of  it." 

"  She  is  a  good  girl,"  said  the  moksa  ;  "  you  have  all  my 
heart  in  the  matter." 


284  THE  VANGUARD 

The  Dragon  went  out  to  his  room  and  wrote  a  letter. 

"  To  Miss  CHUNGEE. 

"  Please  consider. 

"  When  the  wild  goose  flies  too  long  alone,  he  calls 
plaintively.  It  means  that  his  heart  is  lonely  and  de- 
sires a  companion. 

"  MA,  THE  DRAGON." 

This  letter  was  rolled  into  the  smallest  sort  of  size, 
and  addressed  and  entrusted  to  the  brother  of  one  of 
Chungee's  girl  friends,  who  was  calling  at  the  school.  He 
would  see  it  delivered.  But  the  night  passed  and  no 
answer,  and  the  next  day  dragged  out  like  a  thousand 
years.  The  Dragon  had  never  dreamed  of  this,  he  really 
did  feel  shaky.  But  with  nightfall  came  the  letter,  writ- 
ten in  neater  hand  than  he  ever  dreamed  her  capable  of, 
compared  with  which  his  own  was  shocking.  He  tore  it 
open  and  to  his  amazement  read  the  following, 

"  To  MA,  THE  DRAGON. 

"I  know  nothing  whatever  about  the  wild  goose. 
Geese  seem  to  me  to  have  very  little  sense  anyway. 

"  CHUNGEE." 

This  was  like  a  stroke  of  paralysis  and  the  Dragon  was 
stunned.  A  new  kind  of  girl  he  had  met !  He  really  did 
not  like  her  in  this  reply ;  yes,  he  did  like  her  too,  it 
showed  character. 

"  If  I  had  only  left  that  Confucian  nonsense  about  the 
old  goose  out,  and  gone  at  it  with  Scripture,  I  would 
have  done  better,  but  I  thought  she'd  like  poetry."  The 
Dragon  was  distressed.  He  had  asked.  Yes,  he  was  the 
goose,  and  she  had  answered  that  geese  had  no  sense ; 


THE  DRAGON'S  MARRIAGE  285 

what  did  she  mean  by  it?  Really  he  would  give  any- 
thing in  the  world  to  know  just  what  she  thought,  and 
meant,  inside  of  her  very  heart.  The  Dragon  drew  a 
long  breath,  and  Yap  sighed  responsivery  in  his  sleep. 

This  was  serious ;  he  must  take  time  now  and  go  steadily. 
He  would  write  again,  and  this  was  the  letter : 

"  To  Miss  CHUXGEE. 

"  Please  condescend,  be  kind  enough  to  consider ! 

"  If  Pilate  had  minded  his  wife,  he  had  not  sinned. 
I'm  like  Pilate  and  need  help. 

"  THE  DRAGON." 

The  answer  came  quick  by  the  bearer. 
"  To  THE  DRAGON. 

"  Adam  would  have  been  better  without  a  wife,  and 
so  would  Ananias. 

**  CHCXGEE." 

"  Pshaw!  This  is  no  answer  at  all,  not  a  bit  of  sense 
in  it,  shows  a  lack  of  character.  I'll  give  her  up  and  try 
some  one  else."  Something  of  the  old  unconverted 
Dragon  almost  showed  itself  as  he  clashed  round  among 
the  tinware,  but  he  thought  better  of  it,  and  the  dew- 
drops  of  agony  were  wiped  away.  He  was  weak  as 
water,  and  never  in  his  life  had  he  ventured  on  such  a 
contest  She  knew  what  he  meant,  and  yet  behold  her 
answer.  Never  in  the  history  of  Korea  had  it  been  so. 
Did  she  refuse?  Not  exactly,  but  pretty  nearly.  He 
went  over  his  list  again.  Was  she  a  good  Christian? 
Everybody  said  so.  Could  she  sew  and  cook  well  and 
was  she  clean?  Kim  said  her  like  was  not  anywhere. 
She  could  write  and  had  no  end  of  ability.  She  was 
pretty,  "  Yes,  I  should  say  she  is,"  but  he  must  not  lay 


286  THE  VANGUARD 

stress  on  that.  Had  she  character  ?  He  did  not  know. 
These  letters  would  seem  to  show  that  she  had  and  that 
he  hadn't.  He  would  lay  the  whole  matter  before  the 
moksa  and  he  did.  He  showed  him  the  letters  he  had 
written,  and  the  answers  received.  Willis  laughed  and 
said, 

"  But,  Dragon,  why  did  you  hint  at  it  in  that  kind  of 
vague  way?  Why  not  write  it  plainly?" 

"  But  this  is  the  only  way  I  know,"  said  the  Dragon, 
"  and  she  can  understand  this." 

"  Let  me  write  you  a  letter  that  you  can  copy,"  and 
Willis  took  up  the  brush  pen,  while  the  Dragon 
looked  on. 

This  is  what  he  wrote : 

"  DEAREST  CHUNGEE  : 

"  I  love  you  better  than  any  one  else  in  all  the  world ; 
will  you  consent  to  be  my  wife  ? 

"  THE  DRAGON." 

The  Dragon's  eyes  opened  wide  in  wonder  and  he 
almost  said  a  long,  "  I  say ! "  but  that  would  not  have 
been  polite  to  his  master,  so  he  held  on  to  himself  and 
merely  inquired,  "  Speak  it  right  out  like  that?" 

"  Just  as  you  please,  Dragon,  but  I  would  have  more 
confidence  in  that  kind  of  letter." 

Then  he  would  copy  and  send  it.  After  two  or 
three  trials,  and  in  his  very  best  hand,  he  wrote,  and 
sealed,  and  sent  it  off.  It  was  Friday  and  no  answer  came 
that  day,  nor  on  Saturday.  On  Sunday,  deeply  crest- 
fallen, he  went  to  the  meeting-house.  In  spite  of  the 
mokscis  confidence,  the  letter  had  failed.  He  sat  by  the 
corner  humble.  There  was  no  magnificence  about  the 
Dragon  that  day,  in  fact  he  was  crushed. 


THE  DRAGON'S  MARRIAGE  287 

In  came  Miss  Stillman's  school,  and  all  sat  down 
beyond  the  screen,  but  yet  he  could  see  a  little,  and  there 
was  Chungee,  composed  and  quiet,  as  though  this  were 
an  ordinary  world  she  lived  in.  She  watched  the  preacher, 
and  her  head  absolutely  refused  to  turn.  They  were 
about  through  and  would  all  put  on  their  cloaks  shortly 
and  depart  He  looked  again  and, — sunshine  was  noth- 
ing to  it,  Chungee's  face  met  his.  She  sort  of  dropped 
her  eyes  a  moment,  and  then  looked  up  again  and  the 
expression — no  words  could  half  express  it 

On  that  Sunday  afternoon  there  came  a  note,  a  very 
short  note ;  it  simply  said, 

"  Chungee  loves  the  Dragon  too,  and  gives  her  con- 
sent" 

It  was  the  Dragon's  passport  into  the  world's  elysium. 
They  would  shortly  be  married.  The  moksa  was  right, 
and  the  Dragon  hastened  to  tell  him  so. 


XXXIX 
KO'S  MISSION 

IT  was  decided  to  hold  a  conference,  a  dicennial 
jubilee,  in  order  to  take  a  retrospect  of  the  decade 
gone,  and  to  look  forward  to  the  one  coming.  An- 
nouncement was  to  be  sent  long  in  advance,  so  that  plans 
could  be  arranged,  for  even  the  most  distant  dwellers  to 
be  on  hand  at  the  celebration.  Ko  was  commissioned  to 
take  the  word.  He  would  make  the  rounds  of  the  far 
north,  and  the  south,  and  the  west,  and  away  off  to  the 
East  Mountains  to  let  them  know.  Each  comer  was  to 
bring  his  rice,  his  Bible  and  his  hymn  book ;  women,  too, 
were  invited  in  just  so  far  as  it  was  possible  for  them  to 
leave  home.  It  was  to  be  held  after  the  harvest  was 
gathered,  and  was  to  last  for  ten  days,  in  the  large  new 
meeting-house  built  on  the  hill. 

Ko's  heart  sang  within  him  at  the  joy  of  meeting  the 
many  groups  scattered  over  his  native  northland.  The 
long  miles  that  his  feet  must  tramp  were  as  nothing,  for 
his  soul  had  mounted  up  on  wings  as  eagles  and  would 
move  on  and  not  be  weary.  He  tied  up  the  necessary 
clothing  in  a  bundle,  put  in  his  Chinese  New  Testament, 
scarred  and  thumbed  and  written  with  notes  around  the 
margin,  and  his  hymn  book,  though  he  was  no  singer. 
He  had  his  straw  shoes  and  two  wraps  of  cotton  cloth 
six  inches  wide  and  three  feet  long  that  he  used  instead 
of  socks.  He  placed  his  foot  on  the  wrap,  turned  up  one 
end  over  the  toe,  and  then  bound  the  foot  round  and 
288 


KO'S   MISSION  289 

round,  made  it  fast  and  put  on  the  sandal,  tied  it  with  a 
wisp  of  straw  over  the  instep,  and  past  the  ankle.  He 
bound  his  pantaloons  well  up  to  the  knees,  so  as  to  get  a 
free,  clear  step,  put  on  his  bundle  over  his  shoulders,  took 
a  bamboo  staff  five  feet  long,  and  got  his  commission 
clear  in  his  head. 

"  Give  them  their  invitation,"  said  Willis,  "  help  them 
along  and  keep  careful  note  of  everything  of  interest." 

"  May  the  moksa  be  kept  in  peace,"  said  Ko. 

"  Peace  go  with  you  and  in  peace  come  home  again." 

The  wide  gateway  opened  with  its  squeaking  sound 
and  out  went  Ko. 

Over  the  hill,  and  through  the  archway  of  the  wall 
and  out  into  the  plain,  and  along  under  the  pines,  and 
away  into  the  distance  went  the  messenger,  till  his  white 
coat  was  but  a  speck,  and  the  ridge  on  the  horizon  shut 
him  out  from  view.  It  was  Ko,  once  possessed  of  many 
demons.  His  face  in  repose  was  heavy  and  almost  for- 
bidding, but  when  he  smiled  or  spoke  to  his  friends  or 
passers,  it  lighted  up  with  a  very  tender  and  beautiful 
expression. 

Was  he  the  same  man  who  tramped  this  road  before, 
selling  persimmons  and  gambling  with  his  odd  bits  of 
cash,  and  fighting  when  the  day  was  over?  Was  it  really 
he,  one  night,  drunk  and  in  a  stupor,  who  slept  with  his 
face  against  the  frozen  ground,  till  he  was  frost-bitten  and 
his  cheek  felt  like  "  somebody  else's  flesh  "  for  many  a  day  ? 
Had  he  gone  past  those  hills  shouting  and  swearing  from 
the  market,  till  even  devil  worshippers  and  heathen  said, 
"  Behold  a  man  bound  for  the  Yellow  Hell "  ?  Had  he 
wandered  along  this  road,  dumb,  for  three  years  by  con- 
tract with  another  devil  ?  Had  he  helped  men  and  women 
into  deeds  of  infamy  along  this  same  way  ?  Yes,  it  was 


290  THE  VANGUARD 

no  dream,  this  had  all  taken  place  till  God  had  shone 
into  his  darkened  soul  and  raised  him  from  the  dead. 
He  was  over  forty  now,  and  time  was  short.  How  many 
he  must  save  and  rescue  in  the  little  that  remained. 

"  Stranger,"  said  he,  addressing  a  passer,  "  do  you  know 
how  kindly  God  thinks  of  you  ?  " 

"God!  who  knows  about  God?  You  are  crazy," 
and  away  went  the  stranger. 

Once  more  the  staff  marked  off  its  strides,  and  Ko 
pushed  on,  tired  somewhat  up  around  the  knees.  "  The 
stranger  does  not  listen,  Lord ;  guide  me  how  to  speak 
so  the  stranger  will,  but  watch  against  my  pride." 

If  any  man  might  have  been  proud  it  was  Ko.  Along 
the  way  the  welcome  awaiting  him  would  have  gladdened 
the  heart  of  a  prince. 

In  each  of  the  chapels  there  was  a  room  for  the  teacher 
and  here  Ko  put  up.  The  very  best  of  food  was  pre- 
pared and  of  course  cost  him  nothing.  But  he  had  fifty 
Japanese  silver  dollars  that  he  had  saved  from  his  salary 
of  ten  dollars  a  month  (he  used  to  earn  fifteen  and 
twenty  at  shoemaking),  and  these  he  meant  to  distribute 
among  the  sick  and  the  poor.  At  night  he  slept  in  this 
room  on  the  heated  floor  and  usually  one  or  two  of  the 
leaders  slept  with  him. 

Ko  gave  them  Bible  readings  and  Scripture  talks,  with 
illustrations  night  after  night.  The  rooms  were  crowded, 
inner  courts  and  outer,  and  there  were  many  questions 
asked  and  answered.  They  all  knew  about  Peter,  and 
John,  and  Mary,  their  triumphs,  and  their  failures.  No 
land  ever  did  so  much  need  Jesus  of  Nazareth  as  theirs. 
How  well  His  words  suited  and  His  actions  and  thoughts. 
The  old  women  found  rest  in  Him.  The  coughing  con- 
sumptive, just  on  the  borderland,  said,  "  I'm  so  thankful 


KO'S  MISSION  291 

to  have  heard."  The  young  woman  rearing  her  family 
was  bright  with  hope  and  expectancy.  The  old  men  too, 
said,  "  Yes,  I  await  His  call  home  in  peace."  Here  was 
Ko  with  all  the  intensity  and  earnestness  possible,  labor- 
ing to  bring  hope  into  every  hearer's  heart  His  Gospel 
was  not  one  of  condemnation  but  a  great  Gospel  of  for- 
giveness. God  was  not  angry,  but  earnestly  watching  for 
His  children  to  come  home.  There  was  a  rude  tender- 
ness in  this  man's  appeal,  that  would  touch  the  heart  of 
even  a  Western  hearer. 

At  every  turn  there  were  old  friends  who  heard  of  the 
jubilee  with  delight.  They  would  come,  of  course,  and 
be  helped  by  it  into  higher  life  and  greater  effort,  "  ten 
days  after  harvest  from  such  a  date  to  such  a  date  in  the 
new  meeting-house  on  the  hill." 

A  long  list  of  names  was  added  of  inquirers,  catechu- 
mens, applicants  for  baptism,  and  notes  of  interest. 

All  the  way  from  the  Yalu  to  the  Great  Smoky  Moun- 
tains went  Ko,  giving  his  comfort  and  his  message.  He 
had  reached  the  home  of  Shin,  and  was  sitting  in  the 
twilight  talking,  he  and  Shin  and  Cho,  one  of  Shin's 
converts.  Mrs.  Shin  who  used  to  sell  combs  by  the  city 
wall  till  Plum  found  her,  was  in  the  kitchen.  Her  hus- 
band was  no  longer  a  prize-fighter,  but  a  large-eyed,  ten- 
der-voiced man  of  God.  He  was  telling  Ko  what  won- 
ders had  happened  to  them  in  this  last  decade,  when 
there  came  a  heavy  thump  at  the  door,  and  three  rough- 
looking  men  smelling  of  drink  came  in. 

"  Who  are  you  ?  "  asked  Shin.     "  Is  it  peace  ?  " 

"  Never  mind  about  peace,"  said  the  leader,  "  we  are 
out  collecting  money  for  the  Roman  Catholic  Church  to 
be  built  in  the  officials'  town,  and  you  and  your  friends 
are  taxed  a  hundred  yang  each." 


292  THE  VANGUARD 

"  But,"  said  Shin,  "  we  are  not  Roman  Catholics,  and 
have  no  call  to  build  your  church  ;  we  have  our  own  and 
are  content  therewith." 

"  What,  a  heretic  institute  like  yours, — a  church  ?  " 

"  Come  now,"  said  Shin,  "  if  you  pretend  to  be  fol- 
lowers of  Jesus,  why  go  about  in  this  way,  smelling  of 
drink  and  reviling  your  neighbors  ?  Show  what  the 
Doctrine  means  by  a  good  life  and  honest  behavior,"  on 
hearing  which  the  leader  gave  Shin  a  sharp  blow  across 
the  face  with  the  palm  of  his  hand. 

Shin's  old  fire  flashed  for  a  moment,  but  cooled  at  once, 
for  the  Bible  had  taught  him  not  to  strike  back. 

"Vile  heretic  dog,"  said  the  leader,  "preach  to  us, 
would  you  ?  "  He  opened  the  door  and  gave  a  long  call 
and  fifty  or  more  followers  armed  with  sticks  came  into 
the  yard  and  the  room. 

"  Bind  these  fellows,"  said  the  leader;  "  they  have  in- 
sulted the  Holy  Church,"  and  they  were  onto  them  like 
wolves,  and  one  man  with  a  club  struck  Shin.  Ko  re- 
monstrated, when  a  like  blow  was  dealt  out  to  him  that 
stung  all  through  his  head,  and  made  his  eyes  see  dim 
and  misty.  The  blood  ran  down  over  his  cheek  and  onto 
the  front  of  his  coat,  but  his  hands  were  bound  and  he 
could  not  wipe  it  off. 

"  Carry  these  men  to  the  priest,"  said  the  leader,  and 
out  they  were  hauled,  their  wrists  tied  so  tight  that  their 
hands  were  numb. 

Mrs.  Shin  went  to  get  help  but  nothing  could  avail 
against  these  fifty  bloodhounds. 

"  Let's  take  it  gladly,"  said  Ko ;  "  we  must  through 
tribulation  enter  heaven,  and  I've  had  it  all  ease  and  com- 
fort thus  far." 

"  You  enter  heaven,  you  heretic  dog  ?  "  and  another 


KO'S  MISSION  293 

blow  went  crack  on  Ko's  head  that  felled  him.  For  a 
moment  he  looked  up  in  a  bewildered  way  and  tried  to 
rise  but  staggered  and  fell.  They  left  him  for  a  little  till 
all  was  ready,  and  then  said,  "  Up  and  move  on  ! "  and 
out  went  the  procession,  tied  together  like  prisoners. 

"  The  Wickedness  of  God  is  after  the  Jesus  Doctrine," 
said  the  town  folk. 

It  was  a  long  hard  journey  of  twenty  miles,  lasting 
through  the  night.  There  was  an  indescribable  nausea 
came  over  Ko  and  a  weakness  entered  his  legs  that  made 
the  agony  and  suffering  more  acute  than  anything  he  had 
ever  experienced.  They  were  kicked  and  prodded  along 
the  journey,  separated  from  each  other,  so  they  could  not 
talk.  It  was  nearly  morning  when  they  reached  the  place, 
and  they  were  left  here  and  there  under  guards,  still 
bound,  until  the  priest  should  awaken  and  the  trial  begin. 

Towards  ten  o'clock  they  were  dragged  out  and  taken 
to  an  official  Yamen  like  place,  when  the  priest  sat  as  a 
magistrate  or  governor  would. 

"  What  is  the  charge  ?  "  asked  he. 

"  They  have  insulted  the  Holy  Church,  and  have  re- 
fused to  contribute  to  the  building." 

"  We'll  see,"  said  the  priest.  "  Do  you  insult  the  Holy 
Church?"  asked  he. 

"  I  didn't  insult  any  holy  church,"  said  Ko,  "  and  I  too 
am  a  Christian,  and  wait  for  the  hope  of  the  resurrection 
of  the  dead." 

"  You  wretch,"  said  the  priest,  "  would  you  talk  like 
that  in  my  presence  ?  Lay  him  out  and  paddle  him." 

Ko  had  been  under  the  paddle  before ;  it  was  many 
years  now,  but  a  strange  sensation  shook  him  as  he  felt 
himself  stripped  by  these  rough  hands.  The  paddle  was 
laid  on,  not  softly  as  it  used  to  be  sometimes,  but  with 


294  THE  VANGUARD 

stinging  blows  that  left  long  angry  weals  across  the  hips. 
The  agony  came  home  to  him  but  Ko  was  no  coward  to 
wince  under  a  trifle.  The  absurdity  of  the  situation  was 
what  perplexed  him.  He  was  persecuted,  not  by  heathen, 
but  by  those  who  pretended  to  be  Christians ;  who  could 
explain  it?  And  what  mind  had  these  men  "  eaten"? 
He  was  let  up  and  asked  if  he  could  pay  his  hundred 
yang  and  yield  to  the  Holy  Church. 

"  The  only  Church  that  I  know,"  said  Ko,  "  is  one  that 
practices  love,  joy,  peace,  longsuffering." 

"  Ya-a-o  !  Stop  his  mouth,"  said  the  priest,  "  and  put 
him  on  the  rack." 

Ko  was  put  on  the  rack,  and  his  legs  pried  by  the  lever 
till  the  tears  ran  down  his  cheeks,  and  he  cried  for  help  to 
bear  it.  He  was  then  locked  up  and  the  others  had  their 
turn.  Shin  and  Cho  were  beaten  also,  and  were  ordered 
imprisoned,  till  they  should  pay  the  hundred  yang  each. 

For  three  days  they  lay  in  the  prison  house.  On  the 
first  night,  however,  at  Ko's  signal,  a  little  coolie  boy  had 
caught  the  word  and  gone  posthaste  to  Willis.  He  told 
the  story  and  a  few  moments  later,  Willis'  earnest  face 
might  have  been  seen  leaning  over  the  telegraph  instru- 
ment, watching  his  message  being  ticked  off  to  the  capi- 
tal. It  was  a  hot  missive  that  awakened  a  stir  in  diplo- 
matic circles.  It  fluttered  on  legation  tables  and  found 
its  way  into  the  Office  of  Foreign  Affairs,  with  excited 
conferences  as  result. 

"  It  was  all  a  blunder,"  "  Sincerest  apologies,"  "  Imme- 
diate release  ordered,"  "  No  repetition  of  offense,"  "  Holy 
Fathers  urged  hereafter  to  be  more  holy." 

On  the  release  Shin  and  Cho  went  home,  and  Ko  re- 
turned to  Willis.  With  clothes  torn  and  hat  smashed  and 
blood  marks  all  down  his  jacket,  cut  and  bruised  and 


KO'S  MISSION  295 

lamed,  he  was  such  a  sight  that  Willis  could  not  look, 
but  went  off  with  choking  throat.  He  wrote  also, 

"  Let  me  not  be  uncharitable,  but  surely  for  cowardice 
and  brutality  I  have  never  seen  the  like.  These  same 
men  in  Japan  would  be  most  law-abiding  and  lovely. 
Why?  Because  the  Japanese  are  neither  fools  nor 
cowards,  and  any  high-handedness  there  would  land  the 
guilty  ones  in  jail  and  they  know  it ;  but  the  poor  Korean 
is  helpless  and  has  no  redress.  Kick  him  and  he  looks 
back  appealingly;  strike  him  over  the  head  with  your 
club  and  he  merely  says, '  Have  mercy ; '  rob  him  and  he 
cries,  or  sits  stunned,  looking  off  into  vacancy.  Full 
well  has  this  so-called  Christianity  won  the  name  '  Wick- 
edness of  God.' " 

The  subject  was  dropped.  Willis  thanked  Heaven 
that  there  was  an  open  Bible  and  sense  of  fair  play  still 
to  be  found  on  this  troubled  earth. 

Ko's  wounds  healed  and  his  face  was  brighter  and  his 
voice  tenderer  than  ever.  He  had  no  revengeful  feelings. 
Satan  was  abroad,  and  we  must  expect  such  things,  and 
be  good  and  faithful  soldiers. 

"  Moksa?  said  he,  "  is  that  truly  suffering  for  Jesus  ?  " 

"  Unquestionably,"  said  the  moksa. 

"  Then  I'm  glad  I  suffered  it,  for  I  have  had  it  so  easy 
that  I'm  afraid  I'll  lose  my  taste,  unless  I  have  a  chance 
to  bite  into  the  bitter  things." 

Shin  and  Cho  went  home  bright  and  happy.  This 
little  experience  had  done  them  good,  and  helped  them 
past  another  milestone  on  the  pilgrim  journey. 

Reports  came  in  of  persecution  in  other  out  of  the 
way  places,  and  when  the  truth  was  known,  it  was  seen 
to  be  concerted  action,  but  authority  had  ruled  for  the 
time  and  all  was  peace. 


XL 
FROM  ALL  DIRECTIONS 

THE  Dragon  had  been  married  and  life  was  a  dream 
and  a  vision.  His  little  wife  was  beautiful  and 
wise  beyond  all  his  expectations.  He  was  so 
happy.  Her  voice  was  sweet  and  the  sunshine  in  her 
laughter  thrilled  him.  In  the  evenings  their  heads  bent 
over  one  Book  as  they  read  and  talked,  and  his  strong  hand 
turned  the  leaves  along  with  hers  so  delicate.  But  she 
knew  more  than  he,  more  of  the  Bible  and  other  books, 
the  earth  they  lived  in,  the  different  countries  and  the 
starry  constellations  of  the  sky.  She  could  cook  too,  and 
embroider,  and  hem,  and  stitch.  The  Dragon  had  had 
many  companions  in  his  day,  but  none  such.  This  one 
surpassed  them  all,  and  over  and  above  everything  to 
think, — not  a  boy  but  a  pretty  girl,  who  had  come  to 
live  with  him  forever.  He  was  in  no  way  selfish,  was  the 
Dragon,  but  a  grateful,  kind-hearted  lad  who  thought  of 
others. 

One  evening  as  they  sat  together  in  their  little  room, 
he  said,  "  Chungee,  I  have  a  wish  for  the  moksa,  a  very 
deep  wish  down  in  the  heart." 

"  And  what  is  it  ?  "  asked  Chungee. 

"  I  wish  he  was  married." 

"  Do  you  truly  ?  But  you've  been  married  six  months, 
Dragon,  and  you  are  not  wearied  yet?" 

"  Chungee,  you  are  the  wild  goose  that  didn't  have  any 
sense,  if  you  think  I'm  weary." 
296 


FROM  ALL  DIRECTIONS     297 

Chungee  had  lots  of  sense,  and  she  saw  how.  the 
Dragon  loved  her.  His  tender  caress  was  just  as  sweet 
to  her  as  if  she  had  been  born  on  the  first  meridian, 
instead  of  on  the  one  hundred  and  twentieth. 

"  Yes,"  said  the  Dragon,  "  I  do  wish  moksa  had  a 
wife." 

"  Then,"  said  Chungee,  and  her  face  lighted  up,  "  let's 
ask  God  to  send  him  one." 

"  But,"  replied  the  Dragon,  "  where  can  God  send  one 
from?  The  nwksa  himself  says  there  are  no  more  mis- 
sionaries coming  this  year,  only  the  people  to  the  Jubilee 
and  they  are  all  married." 

"  Oh  that's  God's  part,"  said  Chungee ;  "  we  don't 
trouble  about  that ;  we  just  ask,  that's  enough.  He  can 
do  it" 

"  But,  Chungee,  do  you  think  God  could  send  him  a 
wife  right  out  of  nowheres  ?  " 

"  Of  course,"  said  Chungee.  "  God  made  the  world  of 
nothing,  and  He  raised  the  dead,  and  it's  just  things  we 
can't  see  that  God  does." 

"  Then,  Chungee,  let's  pray  about  it,"  and  they  knelt 
together.  The  Dragon's  honest  heart  spoke  plainly.  He 
thanked  God  for  His  goodness  in  giving  him  his  Chungee. 
"  Give  to  the  moksa  some  one  who  will  make  his  heart 
just  as  glad."  Then  these  two  little  children  of  the  East 
arose  from  their  knees,  in  full  assurance  that  God  could 
and  would  answer  their  prayer. 

Invitations  had  gone  out  for  the  Jubilee  to  all  parts  of 
the  country,  some  of  them  across  the  ocean  as  well  as 
to  corners  of  the  East.  Willis  hoped  that  Shoreland 
and  his  wife  would  be  on  hand.  All  the  missionaries 
were  invited ;  he  sent  an  invitation  as  well  to  John  Rakes, 
Jr.,  giving  a  short  account  of  his  part  in  the  work  that 


298  THE  VANGUARD 

had  been  done.  The  desire  was  to  make  it  a  time  when 
those  who  had  spoken  to  and  of  each  other  at  long 
range  might  come  and  meet  face  to  face,  and  get 
acquainted,  and  so  bring  about  a  union  of  sympathy, 
that  would  continue  through  the  years.  It  was  to  last 
for  ten  days,  when  reports  would  be  given,  services  held, 
and  opportunities  offered  to  get  well  acquainted.  It  was 
not  to  be  a  busy  class  for  Bible  study,  but  a  free  open 
happy  time  of  rejoicing,  characterized  by  liberty  and 
relaxation. 

The  programme  would  be  prepared,  but  not  announced 
beforehand.  No  one  would  know  who  was  to  speak  or 
appear.  There  were  to  be  two  choirs,  one  of  twenty 
boys,  the  best  singers  of  the  school,  trained  by  Plum, 
and  a  second  one  composed  of  girls.  The  Church 
was  to  be  decorated  and  made  as  bright  and  cheerful  as 
possible.  "  It  must  be  a  time  not  to  be  forgotten  till 
another  ten  years  brings  us  back  again." 

The  months  sped  by,  harvest  was  over,  and  already 
there  were  those  setting  out  from  a  distance  for  Ping- 
yang,  each  carrying  the  clothing  necessary  and  rice  for 
ten  days.  Out  through  a  mountain  gorge  came  a  couple 
walking  briskly.  They  are  not  young  any  longer.  He 
is  a  round-headed,  large-eyed  man  of  fifty,  called  Shin 
and  she  a  hard  faced  woman,  his  wife,  who  sold  combs  in 
the  market  square  and  learned  of  the  Doctrine  from  Plum. 
She  had  a  bundle  of  clothing  that  she  carried  on  her 
head,  and  he  a  pack  on  his  back.  Each  had  a  long 
bamboo  staff  and  straw  sandals  and  they  talked  as  they 
journeyed. 

"  I  tell  you,  Martha,"  said  Shin  (she  had  no  name,  and 
so  this  was  given  her  at  her  own  request  when  she  was 
baptized)  "  ten  years  have  made  a  difference  in  our  lot." 


FROM  ALL  DIRECTIONS      299 

•*  That  they  have,"  said  she :  "  since  the  day  I  met  Plum 
moksa  there  has  been  help  given  all  along  through  life," 

"  Our  home  was  like  Metal  Hell  that  we  see  in  the 
Buddha  till  Christ  came,  kamsa  haolsayta"  (I'm  so 
thankful),  said  Shin.  "  You  know  when  I've  thought  of 
all  the  brutal  beatings  and  kickings  I've  given  you,  I've 
cried  about  it,  and  while  the  Lord  forgave  me,  I  felt 
there  was  a  settling  up  in  this  life  still  to  come;  but 
everything  went  smoothly  till,  who  would  think  it  ?  the 
Romanists  arrested  me  and  laid  on  the  paddle.  How  it 
did  sting.  I  said, '  Lay  it  on,  boys,  I've  been  owing  this 
little  debt  for  many  a  day,  kamsa  Jiaolsayta.  They 
did  not  know  what  I  meant,  thought  I  was  making 
fun,  and  how  they  did  bring  it  down.  The  marks  will 
stay  by  me,  Martha,  old  girl,  but  I  don't  regret  it  My 
heart  has  been  happier  than  ever.  It  does  a  man  good  to 
eat  some  of  the  bitterness  that  he  has  brought  into  life." 

"  But,"  said  Martha,  "  you  had  much  to  endure  in  me. 
I  feel  it  yet,  inside,  that  I  am  just  a  ^tot-magwee  [demon], 
saved  by  grace,  but  still  to  be  all  made  over  when  He 
comes." 

So  the  pilgrims  came  from  all  corners  of  the  Empire 
cogitating  along  the  way.  Their  chief  expression  was 
thanksgiving.  What  a  changed  world  it  was.  They  had 
dwelt  long  in  inferno,  with  the  air  full  of  demons.  In 
every  hillock  and  tree  and  rock  by  the  roadside  dwelt 
malignant  spirits.  The  ghosts  and  goblins  of  the  dead 
had  yelled  through  the  night  and  chased  them.  Filthy, 
deadly  diseases,  had  swept  over  the  land  to  smite  and 
torment.  Not  a  blade  of  grass,  or  flower,  or  line  of 
wrinkled  sea,  but  some  dragon  or  hellish  thing  was  in  it. 
But  with  Christ  had  come  a  change,  so  sweet  to  the  way- 
farer. The  minor  key-notes  in  the  voice  had  been  re- 


300  THE  VANGUARD 

placed  by  songs  of  jubilee.  The  sun  shone  because  God 
made  it  shine;  the  flowers  bloomed  to  please  His  chil- 
dren ;  the  sea  was  deep,  but  was  waiting  to  give  back  its 
dead.  The  hills  by  the  wayside  had  no  devils  in  them 
now,  nor  the  trees.  True  there  was  sickness,  a  proof  of 
Satan's  power,  but  God  could  conquer ;  there  were  tears, 
but  He  would  wipe  them  away.  There  were  no  dangers 
at  night.  He  Himself  had  prayed  through  the  dark 
hours,  why  need  they  fear  ? 

Over  the  hills  and  out  of  the  distance  came  these  men 
and  women,  Ha  Sam-il  from  the  Wi-ju  border,  Black 
Rock's  mother,  no  longer  in  the  monastery,  Nam  from 
the  far  north,  Old  White,  the  mapoo,  who  had  heard 
Willis  in  the  mountains,  You-gok  from  the  east,  happy 
as  the  day  was  long,  Mang  and  his  daughter,  the  little 
hunchback  Pak  Soontay,  and  a  host  of  others. 

The  laborers  and  farmers  along  the  way  learned  that  a 
great  gathering  was  to  take  place  in  Ping-yang  of  the 
"  Jesus  folk,"  and  they  would  go  too  and  have  a  "  look-see  " 
(kookyung).  So  it  drew  many  who  would  otherwise  not 
have  come. 

"  Do  they  feed  you  for  nothing  ?  "  asked  one  man  of 
Old  White. 

"  Feed  me  ?  Why,  no,  I  carry  rice  for  myself  and  the 
old  woman." 

"  But  what  attraction  if  they  don't  feed  you  ?  " 

"  Fie,  stranger  !  You  have  a  soul  inside  of  you  that 
needs  to  be  fed,  and  rice  can't  do  it,  think  of  that." 

It  became  known  that  in  this  gathering  there  was  great 
interest  on  the  part  of  the  Christians,. and  yet  every  man 
carried  his  own  rice.  It  was  indeed  hard  to  explain. 

The  opening  day  drew  near ;  as  many  as  three  thousand 
Christians  were  already  in  the  city,  and  others  still 


FROM  ALL  DIRECTIONS      301 

coming  in.  They  seemed  to  have  taken  possession. 
Ten  years  before  stones  had  gone  smashing  through  the 
paper  windows  straight  for  the  moksa.  Unwashed,  ill- 
dressed  people,  had  spat  to  express  their  contempt,  as  he 
went  by.  Exiled  and  lonely  he  moved  about  here  and 
there,  none  to  look  kindly  no  heart  to  sympathize.  Two 
or  three  paid  followers  he  had,  but  that  was  all  He  was 
not  worth  notice  in  the  wicked  hurrying  life  of  this  proud 
city.  Why  was  he  here,  this  tall,  light-haired,  queerly 
dressed  stranger?  To  overturn  and  change  the  north- 
land,  till  faces  should  look  his  way  and  smiles  of  gratitude 
illumine  them.  What  a  mad  mission !  Among  all  these 
idlers,  gamblers,  swearers  and  profligates  to  attempt  any 
such  work  !  But  the  "  I  will "  of  an  earnest  man,  backed 
by  God,  can  overturn  the  nation.  He  had  left  his  home 
and  those  dear  to  him  ;  he  had  lost  one  special  treasure, 
whom  no  lapse  of  time  could  obliterate  from  memory; 
yes  he  had  lost  her  in  this  "  I  will,"  that  he  had  whispered 
to  God,  and  though  the  loss  was  still  unspeakable,  rich 
blessing  had  crowded  in  upon  him.  The  cry  of  insult 
had  ceased,  its  very  echo  had  rolled  away. 

Here  were  thousands  of  brightly  dressed  people, 
happy-faced,  with  no  unseemly  word  upon  their  lips,  but 
voices  that  spoke  kindly,  and  hearts  that  held  love  to 
every  one,  thousands  of  them,  men,  women  and  children, 
and  he,  the  light-haired  foreign  lad,  more  than  king. 
This  night  as  he  lay  down  to  rest  he  had  within  the  walls 
four  thousand  followers,  who  would  have  died  for  him. 
What  a  privilege  to  be  thus  king  of  hearts ;  all  the  trust 
companies  under  the  sun  could  not  buy  it.  As  he  saw 
these  groups  gathering  from  the  four  quarters,  so  happy, 
so  joyous,  his  eyes  filled  with  tears,  and  his  heart  almost 
choked  him.  God  was  present,  behold  the  proofs  of  it ! 


XLI 

THE  JUBILEE 

FROM  the  first  day's  gathering  the  great  church 
on  the  hill  was  not  nearly  sufficient.  It  was 
packed  to  overflowing.  Nearly  two  thousand 
pairs  of  shoes  were  guarded  at  the  door.  In  tinted 
colors  and  white,  with  shining  horsehair  hats  they  came 
streaming  in,  the  women,  too,  with  green  silk  head-gowns. 
Over  the  main  entrance  was  the  text,  "  God  is  faithful," 
and  above  the  platform  and  in  view  of  every  one,  "  This 
is  the  victory  that  overcometh  the  world,  even  our  faith." 
On  the  right  side  it  read,  "  Jesus  of  Nazareth,"  and  on 
the  left,  "  Wang-a-  Wang,  Choo-a-Choo  "  King  of  Kings, 
Lord  of  Lords).  There  were  decorations  in  bright  colors 
to  suit  the  Oriental,  and  lights  arranged  by  many  candles 
to  give  perfect  view. 

On  to  the  platform  came  Western  people  not  seen  in 
Ping-yang  before.  There  was  one  handsomely  dressed 
man  and  his  wife,  specially  noted,  who  were  indeed 
strangers.  They  were  evidently  greatly  interested  in  this 
peculiar  gathering,  and  their  faces  lighted  up  in  view  of 
the  assembly.  Who  were  they?  No  one  knew  except 
that  they  were  from  America,  and  fast  friends  of  Willis, 
stopping  with  him.  The  man's  name  was  Shoreland,  and 
he  and  his  wife  were  here  watching  with  intense  wonder 
and  delight,  the  manner  of  this  company  in  which  their 
friend  had  invested  his  life. 

302 


THE  JUBILEE  303 

"  How  happy  these  people  look,"  remarked  Mrs.  Shore- 
land,  "  and  so  clean  and  dignified." 

Her  husband  made  no  answer,  but  sat  with  open  eye 
watching.  He  was  already  surprised  beyond  measure. 
What  were  all  these  people  after,  crowding  in  here  ? 

There  was  another  stranger  on  the  platform  that  inter- 
ested the  people.  He  was  younger,  badly  fitted  in  dress, 
and  loose  and  shambling  in  his  gait  There  was  a  dash 
of  the  Yellow  Race  over  his  visage,  and  he  seemed  much 
out  of  place,  though  interested  withaL  They  saw  Willis 
lead  him  in  and  give  him  a  prominent  seat  on  the  plat- 
form, which  very  much  embarrassed  him. 

"  He  don't  have  much  of  a  converted  look  about  him," 
trnmjhh-*!  Ko.  "  I  wonder  who  he  is  ?  " 

There  were  others  as  well,  whom  many  of  them  knew. 
There  was  Plum  in  charge  of  the  boy  choir,  the  same 
man  as  he  was  seven  years  ago,  a  little  older  as  to  the  top 
of  his  head  but  not  as  to  his  heart.  He  was  interested 
just  now  in  getting  the  boys  into  line,  and  did  not  notice 
how  many  eyes  regarded  him. 

Here  was  John  Watson  the  schoolman,  Eldridge  the 
doctor,  Miss  StiUman,  Mrs.  Plum,  the  lady  physician,  but 
who  was  this  with  a  face  as  though  he  had  lived  a  thou- 
sand years,  oh  yes,  that  was  McKechern,  and  there  was 
Gilbert,  and  a  long  list  of  others.  There  was  another 
man  whom  Willis  singled  out  and  gave  a  prominent  seat 
to  beside  McKechern.  He  was  squarely  built,  with  good 
honest  face  never  before  seen  in  Ping-yang.  His  name 
was  Teller,  who  had  to  do  not  only  with  "  Billy,"  and  the 
monkey-wrench,  but  with  all  the  volumes  that  had  gone 
over  the  land. 

Willis  was  in  the  chair.  There  was  the  bustle  that  in- 
variably accompanies  a  thousand  people  finding  places 


304  THE  VANGUARD 

and  getting  seated,  especially  of  people  dressed  in  laun- 
dried  linen  and  cloaks  of  silk.  When  the  hour  came, 
Willis  stepped  to  the  front,  raised  his  hand,  and  instantly 
there  was  perfect  silence.  The  faces  that  looked  up  at 
him  told  the  story ;  they  were  his  people  all  within  his 
hand. 

"  How  beautifully  responsive  they  are,"  said  Mrs. 
Shoreland. 

He  called  on  the  choir  to  lead  "  Jerusalem  my  happy 
home,  name  ever  dear  to  me."  Koreans,  as  a  rule,  are 
no  hands  to  render  Western  music,  but  these  boys  and 
girls  had  been  trained  and  the  music  had  been  adapted  to 
their  voices.  It  was  beautiful;  some  of  the  touches 
through  it  reminded  Shoreland  of  Hawaii  or  away  down 
South.  The  lads  sang  with  expression  and  from  the 
heart,  and  it  was  a  fitting  opening  to  this  joyful  jubilee. 
Willis  then  called  out  chapter  and  verses  to  be  read,  and 
to  the  very  limits  of  the  building  there  was  the  sound  of 
rustling  leaves. 

"  Did  you  ever  see  so  many  Bibles  opened  in  your  life 
before  ?  "  whispered  Mrs.  Shoreland  to  her  husband. 

All  the  faces  followed  the  page  while  they  read.  Then 
a  brown-faced  man  with  a  twinkle  in  his  eye  spoke  a 
short  prayer,  and  then  they  all  joined  in  unison,  "  Our 
Father  who  art  in  heaven."  It  was  the  voice  of  a  great 
multitude  that  spoke  the  prayer.  Each  part  had  im- 
pressed Shoreland  with  this  thought,  "  What  a  mighty 
hold  Willis  and  his  folk  have  on  these  people." 

By  way  of  opening  the  meeting  the  chairman  said, 
"  As  I  look  over  the  faces  of  you,  good  friends,  gathered 
from  all  corners  of  the  country, — no  doubt  about  it,  this 
is  the  happiest  day  of  my  life." 

Plum  sat  close  to  Shoreland  and  his  wife  to  interpret 


THE  JUBILEE  305 

parts,  and  John  Watson  likewise  by  the  oddly-dressed 
stranger. 

"  Ten  years  have  gone  by  since  I  started  one  night 
from  Japan  for  this  land  of  yours.  I  had  a  friend  along 
who  was  in  business,  and  thought  it  folly  to  go  spread 
the  Gospel.  He  and  I  were  the  only  Westerners  aboard, 
and,  do  you  know,  that  night  we  struck  a  rock  on  the 
Gotos  and  nearly  went  down.  There  was  a  great  hole 
smashed  open  and  the  water  came  rushing  in,  but  the 
ship  had  tight  compartments  and  held  its  own,  so  we 
lived.  We  were  the  best  of  friends  ever  after  and  he  al- 
ways wrote  me,  but  he  said, '  Why  live  away  from  your 
friends  and  country?  The  need  is  great  here,  come 
home.'  In  those  days  men  often  spat  as  I  went  by,  and 
stones  came  in  at  the  windows  because  I  was  a  stranger, 
and  of  course  they  could  not  know.  But  already  Kim 
was  my  friend  here,  and  his  wife,  and  mother  Shin  who 
sleeps  on  the  hillside,  and  I  wrote  and  said, '  No,  there 
are  three  or  four  dear  people  here  that  I  can't  think  of 
leaving.'  The  war  came  and  the  cholera  and  Kim  Moksa 
[McKechern]  there  tasted  the  bitterness.  My  friend 
wrote  again,  '  I'm  to  be  married,  come  home.'  I  wrote 
back, '  There  are  fifteen  people  now  instead  of  three  ;  I 
can't  get  away.  You  must  come  and  see  me  and  bring 
your  wife.'  This  friend  was  in  business  till  he  made  much 
money  and  became  a  very  rich  man,  but  he  never  forgot 
the  exile  and  he  wrote, '  Are  they  truly  your  friends  and 
do  they  really  believe? '  I  wrote  back, «  Come  and  see.' 
The  gentleman  and  lady  sitting  before  you  on  the  plat- 
form to-day  are  my  friend  and  his  wife,  who  have  come 
across  oceans  and  continents  40,000  lee  to  meet  you 
people." 

There  was  an  outburst  of  applause  that  filled  the  whole 


306  THE  VANGUARD 

assembly,  and  many  voices  said,  "  Peace  and  Wel- 
come," that  when  Plum  told  it  Shoreland  arose,  made  a 
dignified  bow  in  response  and  sat  down.  They  knew  all 
about  the  guests  now,  and  it  would  be  their  joy  to  make 
them  welcome. 

Mrs.  Shoreland  and  her  husband  in  all  their  social 
gatherings  and  entertainments,  had  never  before  had  as 
many  welcoming  eyes  resting  upon  them.  She  saw  it 
and  said  to  her  husband,  "  Jack,  I  think  these  people  are 
perfectly  lovely.  I  don't  wonder  Mr.  Willis  has  stood  by 
them."  Her  heart  was  touched,  and  so  was  his,  and  their 
hearts  were  yet  to  be  won  altogether  before  they  left  these 
friendly  faces. 

"  We  needed  the  Bible  so  badly,"  continued  Willis, 
"  and  I  was  no  hand  to  translate  it.  It  required  gifts  of 
mind  that  I  did  not  have,  but  I  had  friends  here  who  had 
these  gifts  and  they  set  to  work.  You  know  them  and 
shall  hear  them  later." 

At  this  point  McKechern  interrupted,  saying  what 
might  be  translated  into  his  native  speech,  "We  are 
auld  freens  and  need  nae  introduction,  but  there's  some 
o'  you  heilandmen  frae  the  north,  I've  no  met  yet. 
From  a'  I  hear  ye  are  a  fine  lot  o'  fellows,  and  I  must 
hae  yer  names." 

How  they  laughed,  especially  the  men  from  the  north. 
They  all  liked  Kim  moksa.  Since  his  "  conversion  "  in 
their  minds  he  was  fit  to  rank  with  the  Apostle  John,  and 
the  dry  odd  expression  of  the  man  was  always  delightful. 

"  But  the  translation  is  of  no  use  without  the  printer," 
said  Willis.  "  We  needed  the  man  with  the  big  machine 
that  could  swallow  rolls  of  paper  and  turn  out  books. 
The  man  who  has  been  doing  that  all  these  years  you 
have  never  seen,  have  you  ?  What  is  his  name  ?  " 


THE  JUBILEE  307 

«  Chfl  moksa,"  said  a  voice.  They  knew  the  name  but 
not  the  man. 

"  For  these  years  he  has  toiled  amid  the  roar  of  noises 
and  the  smell  of  oil,  in  order  that  we  might  have  the 
Bible,  and  Pilgrim,  and  all  the  other  books.  I  asked  him 
to  come  and  he  is  here." 

There  was  a  craning  of  necks  to  see  Teller,  who  had 
fought  so  many  battles  with  coolie  labor  and  his  own 
impatient  self  and  had  come  off  the  victor.  Teller  had 
been  many  years  in  the  country,  but  he  too  was  grateful 
for  the  hearts  that  looked  his  way. 

"Then  the  Rakes  Book  Store,"  added  Willis,  "was 
provided  in  just  the  time  of  need  and  it  has  been  a  rally- 
ing point  ever  since,  so  that  the  name  Rakes  is  one  of  the 
common  words  on  your  lips.  The  strange  story  of  it 
you  know.  John  Rakes,  Elder,  died  here  of  smallpox,  not 
without  hope  of  a  better  life.  He  sleeps  yonder  on  the 
hill  and  his  son  sent  his  thanks  and  money  for  this  store, 
and  it  has  proven  a  never  ending  investment  that  goes  on 
and  on."  All  this  time  Watson  was  translating  into  the 
ear  of  the  unknown  stranger. 

"  I  often  wondered  what  the  man  was  like  who  sent  the 
money.  Did  he  know  what  a  place  he  had  won  in  the 
hearts  of  this  people  ?  The  thought  came  to  me  to  write 
John  Rakes,  Jr.,  to  come  to  the  Jubilee.  To  my  delight 
who  should  drop  in  yesterday  but  this  very  man,  and  now 
let  me  introduce  him,"  and  Willis  stepped  back,  took  the 
young  oddly  dressed  stranger  by  the  arm,  led  him  for- 
ward and  said,  "  John  Rakes,  whose  name  is  on  the  book- 
store." 

There  was  great  applause  and  John  said  he  had  not 
felt  so  scared  in  fifty  years.  If  he  had  been  dreaming  or 
had  gone  crazy  he  could  not  have  been  more  dazed  at 


308  THE  VANGUARD 

his  surroundings.  Here  he  was  applauded  by  two  thou- 
sand people  *in  a  "  meetin'-house."  The  very  thought 
was  madness.  He  shut  his  eyes  and  opened  them,  to 
find  exactly  where  he  was,  and  lo,  it  was  a  big  meeting- 
house and  two  thousand  people  applauding  him. 

The  first  day's  session  was  over  and  there  closed 
round  the  Shorelands  and  John  Rakes  a  perfect  avalanche 
of  white-coated  people.  Willis  must  speak  over  again 
their  warmest  welcome.  From  their  brown  faces  and 
tilted  eyes  there  looked  forth  such  a  spirit  of  friendship 
and  love,  that  the  matter-of-fact  business  man  said, 
"  Look  here,  I'm  getting  rich  under  false  pretenses.  I'm 
in  no  sense  worthy  of  this  sort  of  thing.  Tell  the  people 
Willis,  that  they  are  far  kinder  to  me  than  I  deserve.  I 
have  said  again  and  again, '  Can  any  good  thing  come  out 
of  the  east  ? '  and  behold  this  is  the  answer  that  comes  to 
me.  Tell  them  how  I  thank  them." 

Mrs.  Shoreland,  a  beautiful  woman  and  a  lovely  char- 
acter, had  her  soul  attuned  to  catch  and  respond  to  just 
such  music  as  these  words  of  welcome  were.  It  touched 
her  deeply  and  she  said,  "  in  what  wonderful  ways  God's 
notes  and  melodies  lie  hidden." 

From  this  day  forth  they  never  stirred  out  but  loving 
faces  greeted  them,  and  yet  these  were  the  people  who  once 
cried,  "  Ya  !  Foreign-devil !  "  How  deeply  was  Shore- 
land  impressed.  Here  Willis,  against  his  advice,  had 
spent  all  his  means  and  his  life  in  the  one  enterprise  of 
changing  men's  hearts.  He  had  died  to  his  native  land, 
had  lost  everything,  even  the  wife  that  should  have  been, 
had  walked  amid  disease  and  death,  persisting  in  his  one 
mission,  till  here  was  his  reward  worth  empires  of  finance, 
since  love  is  always  superior,  away  and  above,  to  any 
kind  of  power.  There  came  to  him  new  thoughts  as 


THE  JUBILEE  309 

these  days  passed  by,  and  better  resolves  regarding  his 
own  plans.  He  had  been  a  straight  honest  man,  "  but 
my  life,"  said  he,  "  has  been  so  condemnedly  self- 
centred." 

Poor  John  Rakes !  He  had  never  dreamed  of  this  sort 
of  thing.  He  had  come  specially  to  see  his  father's 
grave,  without  knowing  what  the  celebration  meant  He 
had  been  accustomed  to  swear  at  and  kick  his  half- 
brothers  of  the  Far  East,  feeling  himself  to  be  a  Westerner 
remote  from  them  by  a  hundred  thousand  lee.  He  knew 
how  to  write  Chinese,  and  they  made  the  discovery, 
which  enhanced  him  in  their  eyes  a  hundredfold.  They 
crowded  round  him  till  his  face  looked  bewildered  as 
much  as  to  say,  "  What  do  these  people  want ;  are  they 
going  to  eat  me  ?  " 

They  could  converse  through  the  medium  of  Chinese, 
and  so  Ko  wrote  on  a  piece  of  paper,  "  You  have  been 
our  friend  for  many  years,  God  bless  you." 

John  could  not  kick  a  man  for  writing  this  or  swear  at 
him,  but  he  must  make  some  reply.  He  wrote,  "  You 
are  good  to  think  so,  I  did  not  know  it" 

Another  man  wrote,  "  Are  there  many  with  you  who 
trust  in  Jesus  ?  " 

John  was  staggered  a  little.  "  No,  not  many,"  he 
wrote. 

The  old  man  who  had  asked  the  question  wrote  again, 
"  Now  that  we  know  you  we'll  pray  for  you  every  day ; 
please  pray  for  us  too." 

"  These  are  kind-hearted  chaps,"  said  John  to  himself, 
"  I  like  them.  I  never  thought  religion  did  this  kind  of 
thing." 

"  How  long  have  you  been  a  Christian  ? "  wrote 
another. 


310  THE  VANGUARD 

John  blushed  and  made  reply,  "  I'm  afraid  I'm  no 
Christian." 

They  put  their  dark  heads  together  as  they  studied  and 
read  it  for  a  little,  and  then  Ko  wrote, 

"  You  have  been  good  to  God's  far-off  children,  God 
will  be  good  to  you." 

Through  the  medium  of  won  lee  (Chinese  writing) 
John  and  the  leaders  were  fast  bound  together.  They 
took  him  to  walk  over  the  hills,  showed  him  points  of 
interest,  and  the  windings  of  the  Tatong ;  they  explained, 
also  their  customs,  products,  trade,  so  that  ere  he  left,  he 
had  not  only  friends,  but  a  wide  knowledge  of  things 
Korean, — and  all  the  time  these  men  of  the  Yellow  Skin 
had  prayed  secretly  that  John  would  believe. 

He  was  a  special  guest  in  Willis'  home,  and  the  life  of 
the  missionary,  as  he  saw  it,  was  not  distasteful  to  him. 
He  was  only  a  second-class  character  himself  in  the  Far 
East,  who  had  had  no  dealings  with  refined  society,  and 
now  he  sat  at  table  by  Mrs.  Shoreland,  a  beautiful 
lady,  who  was  fit  to  be  a  queen.  He  thought  she  was 
lovely.  He  treasured  all  the  words  she  spoke  to  him, 
and  she,  after  learning  his  history,  prayed  that  she  might 
be  helpful  to  John. 

It  seemed  as  though  the  town  was  alive  with  Western 
people  while  the  Jubilee  lasted. 

On  each  day  new  interests  unfolded  themselves.  On 
one  occasion  Plum  had  a  list  of  dry  statistics  that  in- 
cluded the  number  of  those  baptized  in  ten  years,  men, 
women,  children;  the  number  of  chapels,  contributions 
raised,  money  expended  from  home  churches,  the  paid 
helpers,  the  unpaid  leaders,  the  schools,  the  pupils,  the 
native  customs  abandoned  by  the  Christians  in  which 
were  the  worship  of  the  ghost  of  the  ancestor,  all  manner 


THE  JUBILEE  311 

of  fetishism,  the  use  of  filth  as  medicine,  the  unwashed 
habits  of  the  mourner,  dust  and  ashes  and  wailing  for 
the  dead,  the  bartering  of  women,  the  feeding  of  Mood, 
the  maiming  of  the  body,  public  carnivals  and  days  of 
feasting,  etc.,  etc. 

One  afternoon  there  were  athletic  sports  on  the 
campus,  and  the  hill  slope  surrounding  it  was  crowded 
with  white  coats.  The  women  were  out,  some  of  them 
to  cheer  for  their  sons  or  nephews,  who  were  to  take  part 
in  the  contests ;  the  girls,  too,  for  they  had  brothers  and 
special  friends.  Twenty-four  lads  entered  the  lists ;  twelve 
from  the  north,  dressed  in  blue  and  white ;  twelve  from  the 
south,  their  color  being  red.  Watson  was  in  command, 
and  Plum  helped  him.  An  umpire  was  to  be  chosen, 
who  would  be  impartial,  cool  in  judgment,  and  unwaver- 
ing in  his  decision.  For  this  office  Willis  was  asked  to 
choose.  It  must  be  some  one  who  understands  the  lan- 
guage and  the  rules  of  the  game.  Out  of  the  group  of 
foreigners  he  selected  a  raw-boned,  fierce-looking  man 
who  walked  out  with  a  stick  in  his  hand  prepared  to  do 
his  duty.  His  face  relaxed,  and  he  seemed  pleased  at 
having  a  part  in  the  good  time,  and  in  sharing  the  bur- 
den of  responsibility.  He  was  an  old  hand  in  the  East, 
and  his  name  was  Fireblower. 

Fast  there  was  a  game  of  baseball.  Shoreland  felt  a 
stirring  in  his  soul  as  the  reds  fell  into  place  over  the 
field,  as  neatly  as  if  they  had  been  born  under  Uncle 
Sam's  flag.  There  was  a  moment  of  tossing  here  and 
there,  fun  and  laughter,  and  then  "Ready!"  went  the 
signal,  and  the  red  pitcher  sent  the  ball,  with  a  keen 
curve,  over  the  plate. 

«  One  strike,"  said  the  deep  tones  of  Fireblower. 

It  was  tossed  back,  and  the  little  red  pitcher  hesitated 


312  THE  VANGUARD 

just  for  a  moment,  and  then  sent  another  shot  straight 
over  the  mark. 

"  Two  strikes,"  said  Fireblower  and  the  eyes  of  the  blue 
lad  at  the  bat  flashed  fire.  The  red  catcher  pulled  on  his 
mask  and  hugged  close  up.  The  pitcher  meditated  for  a 
moment  and  then  sent  his  third  ball  beautifully,  but  there 
was  a  sharp  crack  and  it  went  ricocheting  down  the  field, 
and  the  blue  pantalets  fairly  flew  towards  first  base.  He 
made  it,  though  the  ball  was  caught  and  almost  there 
to  meet  him. 

"  Look  here,"  said  Shoreland,  "  these  lads  play  beauti- 
fully. I  call  that  civilization.  To  be  a  good  singer,  well 
up  in  the  Bible,  and  a  crack  hand  at  baseball,  surely 
means  an  accomplished  boy." 

There  were  great  shoutings  and  fun  and  laughter.  Old 
fellows  from  the  country,  who  saw  their  boys  doing  the 
parts  well,  most  cried  with  joy.  There  were  no  bad 
words,  no  discontent,  and  the  decisions  of  Fireblower 
were  eminently  just  and  fair.  But  at  times  the  excite- 
ment ran  high,  and  McKechern  was  seen  to  break  the 
rules  and  encroach  upon  the  limits,  and  shout,  "  Noo  you 
lads  frae  the  north,"  or  "  Eh,  mon,  but  that  was  guid," 
till  Fireblower  had  to  order  him  back. 

There  were  foot  races  as  well,  and  a  tug  of  war,  and 
one  young  lad  gave  a  beautiful  exhibition  of  the  old 
sword  dance.  He  was  a  south  laddie,  and  McKechern 
cheered  him,  as  the  whirling  blades  and  rapidity  of  move- 
ment outdid  any  Highland  Fling.  The  music  for  him 
was  played  by  a  north  boy  on  an  old-fashioned  violin. 

The  evening  sun  was  slanting  its  streamers  over  the 
ridges  before  the  assembly  broke  up,  and  in  fluttering 
garments,  blue,  and  pink,  and  scarlet,  wended  its  way 
home. 


XLII 
WILLIS  MOKSA'S  REWARD 

IT  was  the  fifth  morning  of  the  Jubilee  and  Ko 
was  to  speak.  The  guests  were  all  present  and  the 
interest  was  still  maintained.  Puffsnauber  had  come 
in  and  was  sitting  near  the  door  looking  on.  Poor  old 
Puff,  life  had  gone  hard  with  him,  and  his  days  were  evil. 
His  wife  had  left  him  and  carried  off  the  baby,  the  light 
of  his  eyes,  never  to  return.  Mrs.  Plum  and  her  husband 
had  been  kind,  and  Puffsnauber  had  appreciated  it.  The 
friendly  tones  of  a  woman's  voice  went  deep  into  his 
heart,  and  awakened  a  long  slumbering  chord  in  response. 
He  had  told  the  Plums  that  he  richly  deserved  the  misery 
that  had  befallen  him.  He  said, "  I  used  von  times  to 
know  dar  vas  a  Vater  oop  dere  [pointing  to  heaven]  but  I 
have  been  veera  bad  forget,  veera  bad  forget,"  and  so 
Puffsnauber  had  come  all  the  way  to  the  meeting-house, 
to  show  his  interest.  He  looked  with  no  little  wonder  on 
the  crowded  assembly,  and  especially  the  clean  clothes. 
Said  he,  "  Dey  vas  surely  sanctified  more  better  as  my 
boy,  he  vas  never  so  clean  in  ten  years." 

Thus  ended  the  days  of  Puflsnauber's  enmity,  and  from 
now  on  he  was  a  friend  of  missions.  The  overwhelming 
proof  of  a  great  assembly  had  not  wrought  the  change, 
no,  argument  of  that  sort  could  not  do  it,  but  kind  words 
and  kind  deeds  had  led  him  gently  into  repentance. 
Many  eyes  were  on  Puffsnauber  but  not  a  single  look  that 
said,  "  I  am  holier  than  thou."  The  one  expression  was, 
313 


314  THE  VANGUARD 

"  Let's  be  friends,  we're  glad  you've  come."  There  had 
been  some  specially  good  singing  this  day  and  that 
touched  his  German  heart. 

Ko  had  hardly  begun  his  outline  of  the  ten  years  when 
a  perspiring  coolie  came  pushing  in  at  the  door  with  a 
note  for  Willis.  It  was  handed  up  to  him,  a  telegram, 
and  he  tore  it  open  in  a  matter-of-fact  way  as  he  had 
done  other  notes.  He  read  it  and  suddenly  his  face 
turned  very  pale.  He  folded  it  up  and  looked  about  in  a 
half  dazed  way,  opened  it  again,  and  no  one  heard  what 
Ko  said  for  all  eyes  were  on  the  chairman.  It  was  only 
a  few  words  and  ran  thus : 

"  We  shall  be  at  the  landing  at  one  o'clock.  Could 
you  kindly  meet  us  ? 

"  JOHN  MURRAY." 

Willis  told  no  one,  but  turning  to  Fireblower  asked 
him  to  take  the  chair,  as  he  was  obliged  to  leave  the 
meeting.  About  fifty  or  more  people  at  the  door,  in 
Oriental  fashion  asked  him  what  was  the  matter,  where 
he  was  going,  and  when  he  would  be  back,  but  he  still 
had  sense  enough  to  reply  as  a  Westerner  does,  "  I'll  be 
back  in  a  little,"  and  he  was  gone. 

No  one  else  had  seen  the  telegram.  The  day  passed  and 
there  was  no  sign  of  Willis.  Ko  narrated  a  few  incidents 
from  his  own  life,  in  a  modest  way,  to  show  what  grace 
can  do.  Very  beautifully  and  tenderly  he  touched  on  Sir 
James,  the  physician  whom  he  had  seen  in  his  unregen- 
erate  days.  He  spoke  of  Foster,  and  told  how  once  he 
had  prayed  with  him  and  for  him  ("  Aye,"  says  Mc- 
Kechern,  "  that  he  did,"  )  how  earnest  and  kind  he  was. 
"  We  shall  meet  him,"  says  Ko,  "  when  the  sea  gives  up 
its  dead."  There  was  old  Mrs.  Shin  too  whom  he  spe. 


WILLIS  MOKSA'S   REWARD    315 

ciaDy  loved.  She  had  been  so  often  his  help  and  encour- 
agement, and  her  words  were  like  music  to  him  in  the 
days  when  his  heart  first  awoke  to  hear  what  God  was 
saying. 

They  had  a  few  words  from  Fireblower,  words  that  were 
wise  and  unwavering  in  their  expression,  and  helpful  to  the 
hearers.  To  the  Christians  it  seemed  as  though  the  Jub- 
ilee had  harmonized  all  discordant  elements,  and  that  their 
Sea  of  Galilee  had  become  calm  and  beautiful 

It  was  dusk,  almost  dark,  when  Willis  returned,  and 
too  strangers  with  him,  one  a  gentleman,  and  one  a  lady, 
but  in  the  shades  of  evening  the  Dragon  could  not  see. 
Soon  they  entered  the  brightly  lighted  room,  where  the 
Shordands  were,  and  one  was  an  old  gentleman,  and  the 
other  a  tall  and  beautiful  lady.  There  were  introductions 
and  their  manner  of  greeting  seemed  something  more 
than  the  ordinary,  so  the  Dragon  was  interested.  While 
the  old  gentleman  was  talking  to  the  Shorelands,  and 
Shoreland  was  saying, "  Why,  yes,  we  met  once  in  a  din- 
ing car  on  the  Chicago  and  New  York,"  Willis  and  the 
lady  disappeared.  The  Dragon  must  see  what  this  meant 
and  so  he  looked  in  past  the  chink  of  the  door,  and  there, 
Willis  had  put  his  arms  round  her  and  kissed  her  many 
times.  She  was  most  beautiful,  and  there  were  tears  in 
her  eyes.  The  Dragon  could  vouch  for  it,  for  he  saw 
through  the  chink  of  the  door. 

He  hurried  back  to  die  kitchen,  undid  his  apron,  said 
to  his  chore  boy, "  Youngster,  you  see  that  these  things 
don't  burn,  and  111  be  back  in  a  minute,"  and  was  gone. 
He  made  a  bound  into  his  little  home,  took  Chungee  in 
his  arms,  just  as  nearly  as  he  could  do  what  the  Moksa 
had  done,  and  kissed  her  so  hard  he  almost  took  her 
breath 


316  THE   VANGUARD 

"  Chungee,  God's  answered  our  prayers." 

"  Has  He  ?  "  she  inquired. 

"  The  most  beautiful  lady  you  ever  saw,"  said  the 
Dragon,  "  has  come,  and  moksa  took  her  in  his  arms  and 
kissed  her  just  as  I  did  you.  I  saw  it,  for  I  looked 
through  the  chink  of  the  door.  It's  Western  custom,  and 
you  never  do  that  unless  she's  your  wife  or  going  to  be 
your  wife  quick." 

"  Oh,"  says  Chungee,  "  isn't  that  good.  I  knew  God 
would  answer." 

"  I  must  be  off,"  said  the  Dragon,  "  or  those  things  will 
burn,"  and  he  was  gone. 

Ko  looked  in.  "  I  tell  you,  Ko,"  says  the  Dragon, "  the 
moksds  wife's  come." 

"  Wife  has  come  !     How  do  you  know  ?  " 

"  Know  perfectly.  I  saw  through  the  chink  of  the  door 
and  the  moksa  put  his  arms  round  her  and  kissed  her." 

Some  news  travels  slowly  in  the  Far  East,  other  rare 
messages,  in  which  many  are  interested,  will  outdo  Mar- 
coni. This  was  one  of  them,  and  before  the  evening  was 
over  5,000  people  knew  that  the  moksa s  wife  had  come. 
How  did  they  know?  Why  the  Dragon  had  looked 
through  the  chink  of  the  door  and  had  seen  him  put  his 
arms  round  her  and  kiss  her,  and  the  Dragon's  word  was 
to  be  depended  on. 

The  dinner  was  not  burned  that  evening,  but  was  a 
perfect  success.  In  view  of  the  occasion  the  Dragon  had 
brought  all  his  skill  and  experience  to  bear,  and  the  wait- 
ers sailed  in  in  triumph.  It  was  the  happiest  party  that 
ever  gathered  round  a  table  in  the  Land  of  Morning 
Calm.  Willis,  John  Rakes,  the  Shorelands,  Mr.  Murray 
and  his  daughter  Eline.  The  Dragon  took  occasional  snap 
shots  with  his  eye  past  a  corner,  that  let  him  see  the 


WILLIS   MOKSA'S   REWARD    317 

dining-room.  His  view  was  directed  towards  Eline.  All 
of  the  others  were  merely  details  in  the  picture,  the  back- 
ground, so  to  speak.  The  more  he  looked,  the  more  she 
suited  him. 

"  Yap,"  said  he,  "  you  fool,  you  don't  even  know  your 
mistress  has  come.  Don't  yawn  like  that,  wake  up  and 
have  some  sense." 

After  dinner  Willis  looked  out  towards  the  kitchen,  his 
face  bright  as  the  sunshine.  The  Dragon  paid  no  special 
attention,  but  went  on  scouring  up  and  putting  things  in 
order. 

"  Dragon,"  said  he, "  do  you  remember  the  picture  that 
used  to  stand  on  my  table  ?  " 

"  Yes,  sir,"  replied  the  Dragon,  without  looking  up. 

"  And  do  you  know  that  she's  come,  and  she's  not 
going  away  any  more  ?  " 

"  I  know  it,  sir,"  said  the  Dragon.  "  I've  told  all  the 
folks  already." 

«  What  have  you  told  them? " 

«  Why ;  that  the  lady  has  come  to  be  master's  wife." 

"  But  how  did  you  know  ?  " 

"  Easy  enough,"  said  he,  "  when  you  first  disappeared 
from  the  room,  I  hurried  to  see  what  that  meant,  and 
through  the  chink  I  saw  you  kiss  her  lots  of  times,  so  I 
told  Chung  and  Ko  and  the  rest  of  the  people  in  the 
church  and  they  all  know  it  now,"  said  he,  making  the 
dishes  clatter. 

Willis  beat  a  retreat  and  when  opportunity  offered  he 
whispered  to  Eline  how  their  meeting  had  been  already 
announced.  This  was  her  first  introduction  to  the  ab- 
surd lands  of  the  East.  She  knew  the  Dragon.  Through 
mutual  friends  she  had  followed  his  course  these  years, 
and  even  this  offense  could  not  shake  her  interest  in  him. 


318  THE   VANGUARD 

And  now  she  must  see  him  and  a  message  is  sent  to  the 
kitchen.  "  When  you  are  through,  bring  Chungee  and 
come  see  us." 

A  half  hour  later  there  entered  through  the  kitchen 
door,  soft-footed,  and  dressed  immaculately,  as  pretty  a 
sight  as  Eline  had  ever  seen.  It  was  the  Dragon  and  his 
little  wife  Chungee.  They  wanted  to  put  their  arms  round 
her  and  hug  her,  and  kiss  her,  but  that  would  not  be 
proper  form,  and  so  they  bowed  to  the  old  gentleman 
and,  in  a  few  broken  words  of  English,  told  Eline  how 
glad  they  were.  "  We  knew  you'd  come,"  said  the  Dragon, 
"  and  we  waited."  But  the  Dragon's  voice  was  unsteady 
and  he  nearly  broke  down. 

Already  there  began  to  file  through  the  room  a  pro- 
cession of  the  leaders. 

"  Thank  the  Lord,"  says  Ko,  "  and  peace  to  the  lady," 
as  he  made  his  bow  and  passed  by,  and  then  came  Kim 
and  his  wife  and  Pang  and  many  others. 

The  old  gentleman  was  deeply  moved  in  heart.  These 
indications  of  welcome  were  more  than  he  had  counted 
on.  He  knew  his  daughter's  heart  was  in  Korea,  and  he 
just  had  to  come  but  he  had  not  thought  of  this. 

Next  morning  an  hour  before  opening  time  the  church 
was  crowded.  Pang  had  passed  the  word  among  them 
and  the  choir  would  give  the  sign.  In  came  the  Western 
people.  As  Eline  stepped  up  onto  the  platform,  where  a 
special  place  was  reserved  for  her,  the  assembly  arose  en 
masse  to  the  strains  of  Chanmee  Sang-jay  Pok-a  Keun- 
won  (Praise  God  from  whom  all  blessings  flow).  The 
tune  was  there  if  not  the  words,  and  she  understood  the 
welcome.  It  required  all  her  grit  and  courage  to  be 
steady  under  the  happy  burden  of  it. 

Could  she  have  heard  half  that  was  said  about  her  in 


WILLIS  MOKSA'S   REWARD    319 

those  strange  accents  of  the  East,  she  would  have  re- 
plied, "  No,  no,  you  must  not,  you  are  altogether  too 
good  to  me." 

Plum  was  in  the  chair,  not  Willis,  and  Teller  spoke  on 
printing,  but  who  cared  for  Teller.  He  had  a  long  list  of 
publications  for  the  ten  years.  The  presses  in  his  care, 
"  Billy  "  and  his  associates  had  turned  out  so  many  books 
and  scriptures,  and  so  many  pages  of  printed  literature. 

"  What  matter,"  said  old  Grandma  Kim,  on  the  front 
mat, "  if  there  are  ten  million  pages  of  printed  literature, 
providing  we  have  the  Bible.  Let's  hear  what  is  next 
about  the  inoksa." 

Under  the  circumstances  Teller  was  delighted  to  be 
"  turned  down." 

There  was  music,  some  familiar  strains,  and  some  un- 
known and  new  that  delighted  her  heart  She  had  come 
as  an  answer  to  many  prayers.  Why  shouldn't  they  be 
glad  and  forget  other  things  ?  They  were  not  taken  by 
surprise ;  it  had  come  about  just  as  it  ought  to  be,  and 
only  Willis  had  turned  pale. 

Plum  arose.  He  had  always  been  a  good  omen  to  the 
people.  His  head  was  bald,  he  couldn't  help  that,  but  his 
heart  was  right.  He  was  sure  to  say  some  fitting  word. 
"  Listen."  Plum  cleared  his  throat  and  smiled. 

"  Go  on  now,"  said  the  very  air  around  him. 

"  Since  the  days  of  Yo  and  Soon,"  began  Plum. 

There  was  a  great  laugh.  "  Never  mind  about  Yo  and 
Soon,"  said  the  old  lady. 

"  Then,"  said  Plum,  "  I'll  have  to  begin  in  some  other 
way." 

"  Don't  interrupt  him,"  said  another  voice. 

He  cleared  his  throat  once  more. 

"  Could  he  not  let  Kim  moksa  speak,  his  throat  needed 


320  THE  VANGUARD 

no  clearing  ?  "  Many  broad  smiles  were  seen  over  the 
platform,  even  Willis'  face  was  unsteady. 

"  Um  ! "  says  Plum,  "  at  the  close  of  such  a  meeting  as 
this,  after  we  have  discussed  sufficiently  the  merits  of 
translation,  printing,  and  other  important  subjects.  .  .  ." 

"  But  we've  had  enough  about  them ;  they  have  all  been 
discussed  long  ago." 

"  Whist !  grandmother  or  you  will  put  him  wrong 
again,"  and  sure  enough  Plum  did  get  nervous  and  break 
down  and  had  to  start  all  over. 

"  Now  no  one  speak  not  a  word,"  said  several  voices ; 
"  nor  you  either,  grandma." 

Plum  lifted  his  hand.  "In  this  church — to-morrow 
evening — at  eight  o'clock  .  .  .  Willis  moksa  .  .  . 
and  the  lady  who  came  in  answer  to  prayer  .  .  .  will 
be  married.  Come  one  and  all !  " 

There  were  no  further  remarks,  no  benediction,  no 
closing  hymn.  The  meeting  broke  up  in  the  wildest  dis- 
order, and  if  the  lady  had  not  been  protected  by  strong 
arms  she  would  have  succumbed  to  a  Far  Eastern  mob. 

Mrs.  Shoreland  said,  "Jack,  I'd  rather  choose  Mr. 
Willis'  place  on  earth,  than  be  head  of  the  Standard  Oil 
Company." 

Eline  survived  and  her  heart  was  steady.  Old  Grandma 
Kim  said,  "  There  were  ten  thousand  lights,  so  that  even 
my  eyes  saw  clearly,  and  on  the  platform  stood  our  moksa, 
who  had  been  so  good  to  us  these  years,  no  longer  alone, 
for  there  by  his  side,  where  I  could  see,  was  the  one  we 
have  so  long  prayed  for,  yes,  standing  by  him.  Her  voice 
is  kind,  and  her  face  is  good,  and  her  form  yam  jun  hao 
[beautiful].  The  moksa  is  married,  and  my  old  eyes  have 
seen  it.  Let  me  depart  in  peace." 


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